Mr Big
by MadnessJones
Summary: Bubbles is now 20 years old and hasn't fought crime in years. She can't bear to face more guilt and heartbreak after her last failed mission. She'll be forced back into crime fighting however when a mob boss calling himself by the unoriginal moniker "Mr. Big" decides to target her family and everything she loves. When the Powerpuff Girls reunite, can they save the day once again?
1. Damage

_Author's Notes: Hello everyone and welcome to a new PPG story! I've had a real burst of inspiration to write Powerpuff Girls stories, and this new story is the latest manifestation of that. With this fic I'm hoping to explore what young adulthood would look like for the Powerpuff Girls, as well as explore some what-ifs for Townsville's rogue's gallery. I know the girls have been aged up in a lot of other fics, but hopefully I can add an interesting spin to it. I hope you guys like this story, and if you want to leave a review I would love to read it :)_

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Chapter 1

Damage

The city of Townsville. A bustling city with happy citizens, blue skies, a lovely coastline, and one of the great wonders of the world: The Powerpuff Girls.

Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup flew around town on multiple missions given to them by the mayor. Blossom was stopping Mojo Jojo from stealing a valuable robot from the Townsville Academy of Science, Buttercup was thwarting a kaiju monster in the heart of downtown, and Bubbles was flying along the coast trying to save a bus full of people that had been hijacked by the Gangreen Gang.

This particular day had been one of the busiest in recent memory. There had been a prison break the day before, and it seemed like every major criminal had come out in full force. The girls had already stopped Sedusa from stealing valuable gemstones from the Townsville Museum, stopped Princess from blowing up the elementary school, had told the Amoeba Boys they weren't going to waste their time stopping their scheme to walk on the grass, and stopped Fuzzy Lumpkins from kidnapping Ms. Haystack Festival. In short, it was a very, _very_ busy day.

Bubbles had probably done the least to help in these efforts, hard as she tried. Her sisters had been teasing her about how her Nosebook social media browsing had been getting in the way of her superhero duties, and how she had grown soft in recent months. She was determined to show them she still had it, but the problem was that Buttercup and Blossom were defeating the bad guys quicker than Bubbles could even get to them. It was true. She _was_ going soft!

With everything to prove, Bubbles chased down the bus and was determined to rescue those poor innocent civilians from the treacherous Gangreen Gang. She didn't know why they even wanted to steal a bus, but she figured they were probably joyriding like the idiots they were.

They were already outside the Townsville city limits, turning curve after curve as they drove around a cliff that was being beaten by the ocean water surrounding it. Bubbles felt exhilaration as the wind caressed her skin and blew her pigtails straight back. She lived for this part, the chase, the point when she could just enjoy flying and feel good about saving people. Buttercup loved the fighting and Blossom loved the planning, but Bubbles just enjoyed the ride before the storm.

Bubbles was much faster than a bus, so she caught up to the stolen vehicle quickly. Her plan was simple, just pick up the bus and fly it to jail so the gang could be arrested. That plan was quickly derailed however when the back emergency doors to the bus opened, and she saw Snake, Grubber, and Big Billy holding civilians in their grasp.

Before Bubbles could even process what was happening Snake pushed his victim out of the moving bus, and Bubbles just barely caught the man in time before his body met the asphalt!

"Oh goodness, thank you for saving me!" The man stammered gratefully.

"You're welcome," Bubbles said quickly before placing him on the side of the road and flying away.

Bubbles had to be fast, because Grubber had just launched a little girl out of the bus! Bubbles quickly grabbed her and took her to safety, but when she got closer to the bus Big Billy threw out not one, but _two_ citizens! Bubbles caught both people before any harm was done, and then took off after the bus. It would be easier if her sisters were there to help, but then Bubbles brushed that thought away. She didn't need her sisters. She could handle five hoodlums in a bus for Pete's sake!

The sky was clear, yet the wind felt like a storm was on the horizon. Bubbles felt herself panic when she saw the gang grab hold of more people to use as a distraction for Bubbles. She knew they were going to throw them out, yet she couldn't really do anything but let it happen and hope she could catch them. After all, if she stopped pursuing the gang then those people would be left at their mercy.

Bubbles sped up, hoping to get inside the bus before the gang tried to take another life. She wasn't quite quick enough though, and Snake pushed an old lady out of the bus.

Bubbles caught the old woman, but then she saw Grubber throw a service dog out of the bus! Bubbles flew to catch the dog without even dropping the old woman, and once she had both of them she placed them on the road as gently as she could. The dog licked her face and the woman thanked her, but she didn't have time to say anything in return. She had to stop that bus!

Bubbles went after the bus again even as it drove further up the cliff. She used her super vision to determine how many passengers were left, and to her relief the gang was in there by themselves. Yes! They had played every trump card and now Bubbles had them.

To stop the bus from going any further Bubbles used her heat vision to pop all four tires. Ace scrambled to correct the bus, not knowing why it was slowing down. Bubbles crossed her arms and smiled triumphantly at finally being able to stop a crime by herself for the first time in months. That would show her sisters who was soft.

Her victory soon turned to shock however as she saw the bus wasn't stopping. Ace wasn't used to driving something that big, and adding driving on the rims to the mix just made it ten times worse. The rest of the gang jostled back and forth in the swerving bus, and Bubbles bit her lip as she waited for them to stop.

Ace didn't want to go back to prison, so he tried to make a turn at a sharp curve despite the bus being practically out of control. He overcompensated however, and the bus fell into the ocean 50 feet below!

Bubbles didn't waste any time. She took a breath, and then she dove into the water after the bus to try to save the green hijackers.

Bubbles had trouble seeing where the bus landed in the water. She was a fairly decent swimmer, but she was much slower in water than she was in the air. She looked around the water, but she couldn't find the downed vehicle. She swam around for what felt like forever but was actually more like 45 seconds before she found the sinking bus. She swam as fast as she could to retrieve it, and then she dragged the whole thing back up to shore.

When Bubbles came up out of the water she breathed in and out deeply, and then she went to the bus to get the Gangreen Gang. The sky was turning grey on the horizon, indicating the storm was fast approaching. It made the mood feel more somber as Bubbles flew to the soaked vehicle. When she looked inside the bus she realized to her horror that the back door had never been closed. The sudden water pressure had sucked the gang out into the ocean, and they were still down there.

Bubbles flew back into the water as quickly as she could to save them. She had to find those guys before they drowned! The water seemed even darker and murkier than it had before, and Bubbles could feel her heart beating in her chest and her lungs begging for air. She swam frantically in search of anyone alive, and it felt as if the cold water had turned from an ocean to a black pit of nothing.

Bubbles looked around in vain for the delinquents. When she turned around one last time in the water suddenly there was the face of a barracuda mere inches away from her!

...

"AHHH!" Bubbles screamed as she sprung up in her bed.

A dream. It had all been a nightmare, except not really. The barracuda part and the storm was just a nightmare to be fair, but Bubbles remembered when the rest of that incident happened. She had been 10 years old then, and it had been the mission that ruined her life.

"Bubbles?" The professor's worried voice came from the other side of her closed bedroom door, "Are you alright, sweetheart?"

"Yes, Professor," Bubbles assured him, "I just had the bus dream is all."

"Do you want me to make you some hot cocoa?" The professor asked in concern.

"No thank you, I'll be fine," Bubbles replied, "Thank you though."

The professor left, though she could tell he was leaving slowly just in case she changed her mind. She breathed in and out a few more times to calm her nerves. At least she had been asleep this time. There were times when the flashbacks would come when she was wide awake.

Bubbles Utonium was 20 years old now, and she hadn't fought crime since she was a preteen girl. Her sisters at first had tried to convince her to keep crime fighting with them, and she even saved the day a few more times after that fateful incident, but she just couldn't keep the images away. The image of the people in danger, of the sinking bus, and of the news on TV days later when the first bodies washed up on the shore. The Gangreen Gang had died after that failed bus hijacking, and Bubbles blamed herself for the incident ever since.

Since that day crime had continued on as it always did. Mojo Jojo still plotted evil schemes from his observatory home, though due to age he implemented more battle robots rather than fight the girls himself. _Him_ would show his ugly red face every now and then, but he mostly kept a low profile. The Rowdyruff Boys would sometimes show up and cause trouble. Well, mostly Brick and Boomer, since Butch no longer lived in Townsville. Yes, a lot of the old baddies had mostly stayed the same.

There were changes however. Fuzzy Lumpkins had gone straight and got a job as a lumberjack, of all things. There were several new crime families including the Smiths (run by the Powerpuff Girls' old neighbors) and the Saga Cartel. There were now ten Amoeba Boys, but they all had the same personality and were all still lousy criminals that were nicer than some regular citizens. Sedusa had married Major Man and moved to Splitsville, though many thought it was only because she was getting too old and wrinkled to use her _best_ criminal assets.

There were changes for those in Bubbles' age group as well, including her own sisters. The strangest one was Princess Morebucks, who had been named CEO of her father's company after his premature death of a heart attack. That wasn't weird in itself, but now she had so much responsibility running the company that she had no time to plan villainy or annoy the Powerpuff Girls. It was as if she had never been evil at all, and now she was just another boring citizen.

While Princess was the oddest to Bubbles, she wasn't the one that affected her the most. No, that would be her sisters. Blossom still lived in the Utonium home, but she was gone most of the day attending university in Citysburg to become a neurobiologist. Blossom still fought crime in Townsville, and in fact was the only one still doing so on a regular basis. Blossom had gone from saving the world before bedtime to fighting crime after dark.

Buttercup would help fight crime sometimes, but lately she had been busy. She and Butch had gotten together a couple years prior and now lived on Monster Island. Together they formed a cage match wrestling duo and frequently fought monsters that challenged them. It was a strange job, but Bubbles wasn't surprised those two violent adrenaline junkies enjoyed it.

As for Bubbles herself, well, life had been a struggle for her to say the least. For nine years she had gone to see the same therapist, Dr. Needo. Talking with someone other than her family helped Bubbles to get through each week, but her mind was still her worst enemy. Bubbles barely managed to get through school since she had poor sleep habits and got bad grades. Once she was out of school she tried to find some part time work to save up for an apartment, but she could never keep it together long enough to hold steady employment.

So, there she was, at age 20, still living at home with no plan for her future. At age 12 she had been diagnosed with PTSD, and while Bubbles didn't want to blame the condition for everything that went wrong in her life she had to admit it didn't help matters. Aside from flashbacks she also had anxiety and intense mood swings. She didn't like to sleep, and she couldn't stand the sight of blue and white colored busses. That had been the color of the bus _they_ had driven.

The one good thing in Bubbles' life was her family and strong social connections. She had friends, and she even stayed in touch with kids from her old schools. Robin had been her best friend since she was 5 years old, and she had known Mitch Michelson even longer. People still loved Bubbles, but there were times when she felt she couldn't love herself.

One thing that helped Bubbles to calm herself after a bad flashback was knitting. For some reason the repetitive task helped to steady her nerves. She loved to make amigurumi plushies, and her bedroom was decorated with the little cuties from floor to ceiling. She liked making octopus amigurumi the best because then Octi, her very first plush, would have lots of friends.

So, with this in mind, Bubbles reached for her light blue yarn to begin her new plush project, a baby whale. She also wanted to make the stomach pale pink so it would have baby shower colors. When Bubbles looked for the pink yarn however she couldn't find any.

"Aw, man," Bubbles said to herself, "I guess I'll have to start on my whale later. I need pink thread."

With this thought in mind, Bubbles grabbed her purse and shouted to the professor that she was flying to the store.

"Just be careful, Bubbles!" The professor shouted up the stairs.

Bubbles told him she loved him and took off through the open window, a streak of blue light trailing her as she zipped through the air. Even now, even with everything that happened to her, Bubbles still loved the feeling of flying and being free. It was one thing she still had control over in her life, and the harshness of the wind made her forget whatever problems she faced in her day to day life.

Bubbles went to Sprawl-Mart to buy her yarn. She knew the specialty craft store would probably have better quality, but she didn't like to pay those high prices when she was spending the professor's money. That was something that always put a damper on these shopping trips. Even though she should be able to support herself she still relied on the professor, and she hated feeling like a burden on him.

After finding a decent yarn at a good price and also picking up a candy bar in the checkout lane, Bubbles was on her way. She had only been gone 30 minutes, but to someone who could travel at lightning speeds it felt like a long time to spend in a store by herself. When she was with friends she could spend all day shopping, but by herself it just felt kinda pointless. Oh well, at least it was a nice day for flying.

* * *

When Bubbles flew home she noted a pink streak of light was landing parallel to her in the front yard, and she smiled at seeing Blossom show up for lunch.

"Hi, Blossom!" Bubbles greeted her excitedly, "I bought a Twix at the store. You want half?"

"Nah, I'm trying to watch what I eat," Blossom replied, "I don't have long since my next class is in 20 minutes, but I wanted to show the professor this diagram I drew of the brain. I'm trying to figure out if I mixed up the thalamus with the hypothalamus. I've been pretty spaced out lately cramming for the next exam. I feel like 50 percent of my diet is just coffee."

"I hear that," Bubbles nodded sympathetically, "You've probably got it right though. You're smart, and you've worked really hard for this."

"Thanks," Blossom replied gratefully, "I'd better get a second opinion though."

The girls walked together into the house, but instead of the usual tranquil scene they were used to, they walked into a nightmare.

The house had been trashed! Bubbles had only been gone for a half hour. How could this have happened so quickly? Worse yet, where was the professor?

"Bubbles, check the basement. I'm going upstairs," Blossom ordered, being in her element taking charge of a crime scene.

Bubbles immediately flew downstairs to see if she could find the professor. Along the way she noted that the couch was missing, the TV had been smashed in, and several family photos on the wall had been yanked off and the frames smashed in. Whoever had broken into their home had some angry energy going on, and that terrified Bubbles for the professor's sake.

When Bubbles got downstairs she saw that the lab had been untouched and the professor was scribbling notes on the paper on his clipboard. Whew! Good. The professor was none the wiser and had not been hurt.

"Professor?" Bubbles called out worriedly, "Someone broke into our house while I was gone! Everything upstairs had been destroyed!"

"What?" Professor asked uncomprehendingly, "That makes no sense. Why, surely I would've heard something..."

The professor followed Bubbles upstairs, and was just as shocked as she had been to see the decimation of their home and possessions. The coffee table had been smashed, potted plants and dirt littered the carpet as pots had been broken, and the curtains had been ripped off their rods.

Blossom came out of the kitchen and met up with the others.

"I checked upstairs, and nothing's been disturbed," Blossom informed them, "My guess is whoever came in wanted to do this quickly so they stuck to the main floor. I also checked the kitchen. The sink is smashed and leaking water, the cabinet doors were ripped off their hinges, and the fridge is missing! _Missing_! How long were you gone Bubbles? They had time to take the fridge and the couch!"

"I was only gone 30 minutes!" Bubbles shouted defensively.

"Let's check for more clues," Blossom ordered, "We have to figure out who did this. Next time they could hurt the professor, or us."

Bubbles and the professor followed Blossom around the house. None of them wanted to be alone in case whatever super strong criminal did this decided to come back. They found nothing in the living room or bathroom indicating what kind of person did this. It was brutish and swift, and possibly done by more than one person.

When the trio made it into the kitchen everything seemed the same as before, but then Bubbles felt something drip from the ceiling onto her face, and when she wiped at it to see what it was her hand came away stained with sparkly gold paint. She looked up, and saw in gold and black spray paint the words: YOU'RE NEXT, LOVE MR. BIG

"Blossom, look at that!" Bubbles pointed to the graffiti.

"Hm...That's some decent penmanship," Blossom noted.

"Is that important right now?" Bubbles asked with her hand on her hip.

"Yes, Bubbles. Handwriting can tell you a lot about a perpetrator," Blossom explained.

"Oh," Bubbles replied sheepishly, "So, um, what does it mean?"

"Mr. Big? Isn't that the guy from Sex & The City?" Professor asked in confusion.

"Not in this case," Blossom said, barely containing her laughter at the idea of the professor watching Sex & The City, "Mr. Big is the mysterious leader of the Saga Cartel. I've been helping the police track his goons down for months. We find the lower level members of the crime ring all the time, but we can never seem to catch the man behind the operation. Mr. Big is into your standard drug running and weapons dealing. He's barely a blip in Townsville compared to super villains like Mojo Jojo or _Him_."

"Well if he's just a drug lord then why is he attacking our house?" Bubbles asked in annoyance, "We're the Powerpuff Girls! I mean, you're still a superhero and everything! If he sent his goons here to harass us then they'd get their butts kicked. It's stupid to even try to defeat us. Well, to defeat you and Buttercup anyway."

"It's pretty obvious he's sending a message," Blossom reasoned, "It's not just that he attacked our house, but that he was _able_ to attack our house. We're gonna have to be on the lookout for mobsters for a while. I'll go back to class today, but tomorrow I'm skipping out so that I can help you search for Mr. Big. In fact, we should probably call Buttercup too.

"Buttercup? But she'll just bring Butch!" Bubbles protested.

"It's alright if Butch comes over," Professor told her, "I admit he's not my favorite person in the world, but if he makes Buttercup happy then I'll do my best to get along with him."

"Besides, it's not like he can trash our house," Blossom added wryly, "Someone already did that."

Bubbles started feeling anxious again. Her home, her fortress of solitude, had been breached by criminals. The professor was lucky to be alive and unharmed. Blossom was expecting her to help with the investigation and Buttercup was probably going to come over and bring her loser boyfriend Butch. Bubbles felt like everything was spinning out of control, and she needed to knit something or she was going to go crazy!

Without saying a word, Bubbles flew up to her room and took out her crochet needles. She was just about to get started with her new pink thread when she noticed something wrong about the shelf above her bed. It took another second for it to dawn on Bubbles what was off about it. Octi, her prized stuffed animal, wasn't in his usual place in the center of the shelf.

"Oh no..." Bubbles whispered tearfully, but then in a louder voice screamed, "SOMEONE TOOK MY OCTI!"


	2. No One Sees Mr Big

_Author's Notes: Welcome to another chapter of "Mr. Big". I'm enjoying writing this story so far, and I enjoy the different tones this particular fic is allowing me to work with. Drama, comedy, mystery, and character building. It's all just so much fun! This chapter introduces Femme Fatale to the story, and I have to say she is difficult to write yet fun to write as well. She's basically what would happen if the concept of butthurt became a person and started committing crimes. LOL! Anyway, enough of me rambling. Thank you to those who are reading this story, and I hope you enjoy this chapter of the story :)_

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Chapter 2

No One Sees Mr. Big

Buttercup and Butch were toweling off sweat from their bruised sore bodies after another successful day of protecting their title as Monster Island's _power couple._ After they were reasonably clean they were just going to chill by playing a video game together and then eating whatever snacks were left in the fridge.

"Man, did you see that tiny punk that tried to take me down?" Butch asked excitedly as he roughed up the towel around his black spiky hair, "He really thought those shooting spikes were going to stop me? What a load!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Buttercup groused playfully at her boyfriend, "You hear anything from your bothers lately? The four of us were supposed to go to the go kart track this weekend."

"Why even bother inviting them?" Butch scoffed, "Brick just bosses everyone around and Boomer crashes into everything. At least if I ram my kart into yours you won't cry like Boomer does."

"Hah, if anyone's gonna cry it's gonna be you," Buttercup taunted him.

Butch was about to fire off a retort, but before he could Buttercup's cell phone started ringing. She looked at the caller ID and decided to answer it, so Butch assumed it was Buttercup's stupid sisters or stuck-up father.

"Hello? Oh, hey Blossom," Buttercup greeted her mechanically, too tired from the day for anything else, "Yeah? ... _What_!?"

"What?" Butch exclaimed curiously.

"Well where was Bubbles?" Buttercup asked accusingly, "_Seriously_? But how did that happen so fast?"

"What happened?" Butch demanded to know.

"Yeah, I guess I'd better fly over there," Buttercup conceded, "Is the professor okay?... Good. Wait, what was stolen from Bubbles?... Octi? Who would steal an old stuffed octopus?... Yeah, I know! ... Look, I get it, okay? I already said I'd be over there soon! ... Well of course I am! ... Why are you so judgmental, Blossom? Butch is a nice guy once you get to know him- ... Look, just hang on, okay? We can handle it. We're the Powerpuff Girls. Nothing can stop us! ... Okay, buh-bye."

"Well?" Butch asked impatiently, "What the heck did she say?!"

"Blossom said their house was robbed," Buttercup replied, "She and Bubbles were gone for a few minutes, and someone broke in and wrecked everything. The professor is fine, but apparently there's some stupid mob boss targeting the family. I gotta go help Blossom handle this, and if you don't feel like cooking your own dinner tonight you'll come with me."

"You don't cook my dinner!" Butch pointed out, "We eat takeout like civilized people!"

"Just get your wallet and come on," Buttercup ordered.

Butch scowled at his bossy girlfriend, but complied with her demands like he always did. The two of them were always bossing each other around and trying to figure out who the dominant half of their relationship was. It always seemed to be whoever had the more passionate case to argue, and today it seemed Buttercup had won.

* * *

The light flipped on at the dusty downtown penthouse, illuminating a home that had been left dormant for quite a long time. Femme Fatale had been in prison for fifteen years after a string of bank robberies had gone wrong, and it felt strange to actually step foot in her own home again.

Even though nothing had been touched there were still many things in decay. The colors head faded on her couch and her chairs, there was a layer of dust on everything, and when she went to turn on her old boxy TV it didn't work anymore. Despite how depressing the setting was, Femme Fatale knew she was one of the lucky ones. Many prisoners left the big house with no money, no home, and no job prospects. At least her penthouse was one that she owned outright and therefore was a place she could rest her head at night.

Femme Fatale wasn't just going to rot in her shrine to the past and fade into obscurity though. She had learned a lot from her time locked away, and she felt confident enough to try her hand at villainy again. She would have to work her way up to be sure, but soon she would be ready to showcase herself again and finally defeat those brats that had stolen her freedom, the Powerpuff Girls!

But first, she needed money. Since she was a former super villain (in her opinion) she decided she should look for some illegal enterprise to work for. She went on the website townsvillains,edu and started looking for job postings from the various crime organizations in Townsville.

"Hm, let's see..." Femme Fatale muttered to herself as she scrolled on her clunky old computer, "Hitman wanted. Argh! Seriously? Hit _man? _As if a woman isn't good enough for the job? That's it! This ad is getting _such_ an angry comment..."

This went on for several minutes as each new post enraged the feminist villain. The posts went along the lines of 'Delivery _Boy_ Wanted', 'Mob Boss Seeks Hit_man_', 'Right Hand _Man_ Wanted', 'Hench_man_ wanted', and so on. Femme Fatale refused to even answer any of these ads because of the semantics used. A normal villain would know not to look a gift horse in the mouth, but Femme Fatale was anything but normal. She would rather not work at all than work for someone who thought a man could do her job better than her.

Finally, after scrolling through the villain site for 15 minutes, she found a post she liked. 'Wanted: Someone to kill the Powerpuff Girls. Must be smart, be able to keep a secret, and bring own weapons. Will pay big $$$. Willing to haggle. Contact the Saga Cartel at 555-555-5543.'

"Hm, well at least _somebody_ uses gender neutral terms around here," Femme Fatale said approvingly, "Hm, I haven't heard of the Saga Cartel though. Must be a new crime ring. I'll just bet a _man_ runs it. Female villainy is at an all-time low. Well, looks like I'll just have to shatter that glass ceiling. Hahahaha!"

Femme Fatale did her most impressive evil laugh even though no one was there to hear it. She then went to the closet and searched for one of her costumes that hadn't been eaten by moths. She managed to find one, and then found her ankh shaped laser gun. Femme Fatale was back in business, and killing the Powerpuff Girls would be the best way to get started in super villainy once again.

* * *

When Buttercup and Butch arrived at the Utonium residence Blossom was quick to explain the situation. Buttercup was enraged that someone would just come in and destroy their home, while Butch was mostly just impressed that someone had the nerve to steal the couch. He became less impressed however when he was informed that the fridge was stolen too.

"What? You mean there's no food to eat in this dump?" Butch asked heatedly, "Then what am I even doing here!?"

"Helping us find these guys so we can take 'em to jail, duh!" Buttercup rudely replied.

"But you didn't even hand me dinner!" Butch argued, "I'm not beating up bad guys on an empty stomach. I'm gonna get a pizza. You losers want anything?"

"I'm not dignifying that with a response," Blossom replied haughtily.

"Could you bring back a pineapple pizza?" Bubbles asked, not too proud to accept food from the guy who called her a loser.

"Pineapple? Yuck! Gross! Buttercup, you're related to these weirdos _how_?" Butch asked after sticking out his tongue.

"I could go get the pizza," Professor offered.

"No way! You'll come back with only the pineapple just to spite me," Butch accused, "I'm goin' to get dinner. Don't leave without me."

With those words Butch flew off, and Bubbles breathed a sigh of relief that he was gone. Even after all this time the Rowdyruff Boys still freaked her out. Bubbles didn't know if she could avoid a panic attack for as long as it would take to solve the case with Butch around.

"Yeesh! Buttercup, why do you even date that guy?" Blossom asked caustically, "He's a moron and a creep."

"Yeah, but he gets me," Buttercup replied without shame, "Look Blossom, you might be okay with dating normies, but I need more than that. I need excitement, I need power, I need someone who doesn't just ask me how my day was, but jumps in there and fights alongside me. Butch may not be perfect, but he and I do things for each other that no one else can. He understands me in ways no other guy could."

"But he's mean," Bubbles timidly mentioned.

"So? I'm mean," Buttercup countered.

"Not like him," Bubbles insisted, "Butch doesn't care who he hurts. You at least only attack bad guys."

"So?" Buttercup replied defensively with her arms crossed.

"Look girls, this conversation is getting us nowhere," Blossom reasoned, "We still need to figure out how to find Mr. Big."

"Mr. Big? Wasn't that a name from an episode of King of The Hill?" Buttercup asked obliviously.

"No Buttercup, Mr. Big is the boss of the Saga Cartel," Blossom explained, "He's the one who's trying to get to us, so we have to find him first."

"Oh. Okay," Buttercup nodded in understanding, "Well then that's easy. Just find some of his goons and beat 'em up until they tell us where the big guy is."

"Hm, a direct approach huh? That might actually work," Blossom pondered, "Okay Buttercup. We'll try your way first. When Butch gets back the four of us will split up and go after different goons we know to work with Mr. Big. I'll start with Patches Malone in Townsville Prison. Buttercup, you go after Louey The Knife who's currently on parole and lives in the Sleep Eazy Motel. Bubbles, you talk to Harriet Rouge who works the neon sign district. Butch can talk to Harry Fingers who works at a golf course."

"Do I have to do this?" Bubbles asked nervously, "I haven't fought crime in so long, I don't know if I remember how. Besides, what if someone gets hurt?"

"Harriet Rouge is a nonviolent offender. You shouldn't have any trouble with this one," Blossom assured her, "Just talk to her and see what she knows about Mr. Big. That's all you have to do, okay?"

"Well...okay," Bubbles reluctantly replied.

Back in the old days Buttercup would've made a snide remark about Bubbles being a baby. She was old enough and mature enough now though that she understood her sister's situation. Bubbles didn't do well in normal settings, let alone anything that involved crime fighting. Buttercup and Blossom both knew that Bubbles would be as much of a liability as Butch, though for very different reasons. One didn't know how to throw a punch anymore, and the other didn't know when to stop.

* * *

Femme Fatale had called the number given for the Saga Cartel and was surprised to find out her potential employer was ready to meet with her that very day. She wasn't going to mess this up. She was going to get the job, destroy the Powerpuff Girls, and then use her money to fund her own competing criminal empire that would engulf any other entity that stood in its way.

She followed the instructions to the meeting point precisely, and felt her heart beating fast in her chest when she saw it was a gated community. She didn't know much about her employer, but she did know one thing that made her grind her teeth with rage: his name was Mr. Big. She hated it when she was right, but she was. The Saga Cartel was male dominated, just like everything else! Well, if she had her way someday that would change...

She told the gatekeeper the address and waited to be let inside. It didn't help that she had taken a bus to get there and was tired from walking up the driveway to the stupid gate. Perhaps heeled boots was the wrong thing to wear with her costume. She would make a note of that for future design improvements.

When the gatekeeper let her in she did her best to stride confidently into the neighborhood. The mansion where Mr. Big lived was huge, and Femme Fatale recognized the house next door as belonging to the Morebucks family. Well, she wasn't going to let this opulent show of money and power intimidate her. That was exactly what _he_ would want.

She knocked on the door, and a tiny slit in the door slid back to reveal a pair of eyes looking straight at her.

"Who are you?" A gruff voice asked suspiciously.

"Femme Fatale. I'm here to see Mr. Big about his ad."

"No one talks to Mr. Big," The man replied condescendingly but then opened the door for her, revealing himself to be a short man in a black trench coat and hat, "The name's Moose. I'm Mr. Big's right hand man, and from now on you'll be dealing with me."

"Really?" Femme Fatale asked, unimpressed, "And why is Mr. Big hiding behind you, _Moose_? Is the big man himself afraid of his own assassins? Hah! I'm not surprised."

"Mr. Big is too important to deal with some wannabe with a flare gun," Moose scoffed, "This hit is for the Powerpuff Girls, not the Girl Scouts."

"Are you saying because I'm a woman that I'm not good enough to be an assassin?" Femme Fatale barked irritably.

"Lady, it's the Powerpuffs. I know they ain't what they used to be, but they're still more powerful than you," Moose replied with a patronizing smile, "I'm sure you think you got a good gimmick, but a good gimmick ain't enough to take down the 'Puffs. The boss is the strongest man I ever met, and even he can't take down the Powerpuffs by brute force. It's gonna take brains, and it's gonna take guts. You think you got what it takes, _Girl Scout_?"

"It's Femme Fatale!" She shouted at the annoying little man, "And I can take on anything you throw at me! Here, let me show you."

With those words Femme Fatale holstered her gun and grabbed Moose before he even knew what hit him. She spun him around above her head and then threw him against the wall! When he went to pull a pistol out of his coat, he found that she already had her ankh gun pointed straight at his face!

"So, how much am I getting paid?" Femme Fatale purred smugly.

"How does three million sound?" Moose gulped as he eyed the gun still close to his face.

"I want it all in Susan B Anthony and Sacajewea dollars," Femme Fatale demanded.

"I'll s-speak to the b-boss about it," Moose stammered.

"Good. Then this meeting is over," Femme Fatale replied as she withdrew her gun, "Tell Mr. Big he has my number, and I expect half of the payment before I begin. You little boys can give me the rest when the job is done."

"Whoa, hey, wait a minute! You expect 1.5 million in lady coins!?" Moose asked incredulously, "How are we supposed to get all that so quickly?"

"That's your problem," Femme Fatale replied nonchalantly, "Just do it. I might not be able to touch Mr. Big, but I can certainly get to _you_."

With that cryptic threat hanging in the air Femme Fatale walked off feeling like she had proved her point. Moose tugged at his collar and dusted off his trench coat. He then pulled out his smartwatch and called his boss.

"Hey, Mr. Big. It's Moose. Your new assassin just left. She's confident, but I'm not sure if we should hire her, sir."

"Why not?" Mr. Big asked on the other side of the line.

"She wants 3 million dollars and 1.5 million upfront."

"So? What's the problem?"

"She wants it all in Susan B Anthony and Sacajewea coins," Moose explained.

"How much are those worth?" Mr. Big asked.

"A dollar each, but that ain't the point. Those coins are hard to find, and she wants over a million of them!"

"Do it."

"What? But boss-!"

"Mr. Big said do it!" Mr. Big shouted, "If this one gets the Powerpuff Girls, then it's worth every penny. If she fails, then Fluffy gets to eat her. Got it?"

"Yes, sir," Moose replied with a sinister smile, pretty sure Femme Fatale was going to go the 'Fluffy' route, "I'll get the boys to start getting withdrawals from the banks for our new _Girl Scout._ Heh heh heh heh."

Mr. Big started laughing along with Moose from his end of the line; one thinking of the demise of the Powerpuff Girls and the other thinking about Femme Fatale screaming from inside Fluffy's enclosure.

* * *

Blossom was face to face with Patches Malone, the only thing separating them being a thick wall of glass and a telephone line.

"You're my visitor, huh?" Patches said in disappointment, "I got my cavity searched for this?"

"Patches, I'm working on a very important case, and you could be the difference between justice and the death of who knows how many innocent people," Blossom explained, hoping to appeal to his humanity.

"So the Powerpuff is a detective now?" Patches asked mockingly, "Alright, I'll bite. Maybe you can help me cut a deal with the prosecution in my upcoming trial for drug trafficking. What do you wanna know?"

"I need any information you can give me on Mr. Big," Blossom stated.

"My boss? No way, kid!" Patches exclaimed as he scooted a little further back from the screen, "Nobody rats out Mr. Big, and nobody outside the gang gets to see him. The Saga Cartel is very particular like that, and if I don't wanna get shanked from either a rival crime family or my own, then I gotta keep my mouth shut."

"Patches, this is personal for me," Blossom told him, "My father is in mortal danger, as is anyone who happens to be close to me. Mr. Big wants me to stop fighting crime, and my sisters could end up in the crossfire. I'm willing to work toward getting you a good deal, but you need to work with me."

"I don't need to do nothin'," Patches growled, "Nobody sees Mr. Big. Nobody!"

Blossom realized she wasn't going to get anywhere with Patches Malone, so she left him be. She just hoped that the others were having better luck than she was.

...

"Where is he, ya punk!?" Butch screamed before landing another punch on Harry Fingers, much to the horror of the golfers he was caddying for.

"I told you I don't know!" Harry screamed pleadingly, "I never directly saw Mr. Big! I just ran errands for the gang! I was a gofer, nothing more!"

"Too bad," Butch smirked maliciously.

Butch then punched Harry Fingers for all he was worth and then threw him on the ground! The golfers ran away from the psychotic Rowdyruff, and Harry tried to crawl away. Butch grabbed him by the leg and dragged him back, and Harry clawed at the immaculate grass and dirt underneath in an effort to avoid the wrath of the green eyed superhuman.

"Now, I'm gonna ask you again, and you're gonna answer me!" Butch screamed in Harry's ear, "Where's Mr. Big?"

Harry felt cornered. If he told Butch about Mr. Big it might get him out of this beating, but he would just be beaten to death anyway once the cartel found out he had betrayed them. Not to mention he heard Mr. Big's weapon of choice was his own bare hands. Harry did not feel like getting beaten or strangled to death, but with Butch holding him in the air like this he didn't have much choice.

"I won't die a rat!" Harry finally shouted at Butch, "I'm sorry, but I can't talk!"

"Your loss," Butch replied easily as he threw Harry up in the air.

Harry screamed as he fell, but was then caught by Butch at the last second. Butch then punched him again in the gut, and Harry was sure this was the end, but then an authoritive yet feminine voice said "Put the stooge down, Butch!"

"Huh? I don't have to listen to you!" Butch argued with Harry's current hero, Blossom the Powerpuff Girl.

"Butch, you're going to kill him if you aren't careful," Blossom warned, "Beating up the bad guys _is_ part of being a superhero, but killing them isn't. Just let him go. He did his time."

"But he didn't say anything useful!" Butch complained.

"Neither did my guy," Blossom told him, "Hopefully Buttercup and Bubbles are having better luck than we are."

...

Meanwhile, in the neon sign district, Bubbles had finally located Harriet Rouge. It wasn't easy, as there were many floozies working the street that evening, but Bubbles had finally found the right one in the form of an aging redhead with a smoker's cough and saggy skin.

"So, um, you're Harriet, huh?" Bubbles said nervously as she kicked at a pebble with her foot.

"Yeah, whaddya need kid?" Harriet asked haggardly, "In case you haven't noticed, I've got a full night ahead of me."

"Well, I was wondering what you could tell me about Mr. Big, ma'am," Bubbles asked as politely as she could manage, "I really need to find him."

"Good luck," Harriet snorted sarcastically, "I never met him personally. I went out with Moose McGregor for a while. He's Mr. Big's proxy. Never met him in the same building twice. The Saga Cartel likes the element of surprise. Moose did tell me a few things about Mr. Big though, but I'm not sure how much is true."

"Anything would be helpful, ma'am," Bubbles replied humbly.

"Well, Moose said Mr. Big likes to eat, _a lot_," Harriet chuckled, "They don't call him _Mr. Big_ just for his power. Apparently he's some kind of giant, and he instills loyalty in his men by paying them well and cultivating a fun atmosphere at work. House parties, vacations, you name it and he's done it. Of course for every carrot there's a stick, and I hear Mr. Big can snap a man's spine with one hand."

Harriet then started coughing and hacking for such a long time that Bubbles began to wonder if she was okay. After a minute though Harriet managed to take a few breaths and readjust her tight fitting red dress.

"What can I say kid? It's a drug cartel. There's hundreds of them," Harriet said with a careless wave of her cigarette, "You'll be lucky to find anyone willing to talk to you about Mr. Big. The ones that aren't afraid of him simply like him too much. Not to mention bringing him down would call attention to their own bad actions. Why do you wanna know, anyway?"

"Because his goons attacked our house," Bubbles explained, "The Saga Cartel wants to kill us, and they might hurt our professor."

"I'm sorry to hear that, sweetie," Harriet replied sympathetically, "I know you were a Powerpuff Girl once, and you did a lot for this town. Even criminals should know what a horrible place Townsville would be without you. I hope you find Mr Big and take him down a few notches. I gotta go now. I see a regular customer pulling up."

Bubbles watched as the old woman leaned into a car window and then took off so she wouldn't accidentally eavesdrop on the conversation. Just as she was flying away she ran into Buttercup, who had just come back from the Sleep Eazy Motel.

"Did you find out anything, Bubbles?" Buttercup asked.

"I found out Mr. Big is a giant and he likes to throw parties," Bubbles told her sister, "What did you find?"

"You don't wanna know," Buttercup shuddered as she recalled what Louey The Knife had been doing in that room with Ms. Haystack Festival, "I questioned Louey, but he wouldn't talk. He said no one sees Mr. Big and I should just quit now while I'm ahead. Don't these idiots remember who I am? I'm Buttercup, the toughest fighter of the Powerpuff Girls!"

"Harriet remembered me," Bubbles commented, "I wish she didn't though. It makes me feel like a has-been."

"There's nothing wrong with retiring," Buttercup tried to reassure Bubbles, "You got in too deep, and you had to take a break. It happens to a lot of people. I'd be upset too if people kept saying I failed when I saved the day."

"It wasn't that," Bubbles replied ruefully, "I let people die on my watch. I mean, I know they were the bad guys, but it wasn't like they were the ultimate evil or anything. They were just punks that only had one brain to share between five of them. I tried to save the day like I always did, and it got them killed," Bubbles then sighed and said, "After this is over, I need to talk to Dr. Needo as soon as possible."


	3. Drive

_Author's Notes: Thank you to everyone who is reading this story. I know it's not the typical PPG fanfiction, but hopefully you guys are enjoying the ride anyway :)_

* * *

Chapter 3

Drive

Femme Fatale waited three days for those bozos at the Saga Cartel to deliver her money, and she grew more impatient as every day she took the bus to the old warehouse district and yet they never showed up. Part of her felt like they were trying to humiliate her on purpose because of the way she kicked Moose's butt.

As Femme Fatale made her way around Townsville each day she became more accustomed to what life was like on the outside. There were more people that had smartphones and tablets on their person at all times. Part of her thought it might be worth stealing them from the tech shops around the mall, but then she realized that they were so ubiquitous that most of them probably weren't even worth all that much. She didn't yet know which brand was in and what brand was out. She also noticed that while she used to have her pick of newspaper kiosks now there were only a couple left in the entire town.

On this day she was sitting outside the warehouses again waiting for someone from the cartel to deliver her 1.5 million in coins. She was reading the paper she picked up that day and noticed that the front page news was about the next mayoral election. Apparently the current mayor was so old that now he wasn't even going to attempt to run.

"Finally," Femme Fatale snorted in contempt, "Like we needed some dottering old man running this city into the ground. Let's see who the current candidates are..."

There appeared to be three candidates running for mayor of Townsville. There was Sarah Bellum, the mayor's ex-assistant. There was also Harold Smith, the mob boss that ran the Smith Family weapons ring. The third candidate was Talking Dog Jr.

"Are you kidding?" Femme Fatale scoffed at what she was reading, "There's only one qualified candidate on this list! It has to be Sarah Bellum! Surely Townsville isn't stupid enough to elect a super villain or a dog."

The she read on and saw that the polls were neck in neck with Talking Dog Jr. having a slight lead.

"Seriously!?" Femme Fatale shrieked, "I don't want to live in this town anymore! These stupid-!"

Her tirade was interrupted however when a shiny black Rolls Royce pulled up to the parking lot, and Moose rolled down the window and handed Femme Fatale a large sack of money.

"Make sure you get the job done, or else you'll have to answer to Mr. Big," Moose warned before driving away.

Femme Fatale didn't even have a chance to answer before the car sped off, but at least she had her money. She opened the bag to see her beautiful coins, only to be confronted by a sack full of $100 bills!

"Benjamin Franklin!?" Femme Fatale shouted angrily, "Oh, no you don't!"

Femme Fatale ran to the nearest bus stop in full costume carrying a sack full of money, and several ordinary citizens of Townsville looked at her like she was the weirdest thing they'd seen all year. Coming from Townsville denizens, that was saying something. She took the bus all the way to the gated community, and several passengers stared at the villainess as she scowled and stewed over what she perceived to be a slight. Apparently bell bottom pants and an ankh mask weren't the best fashion choices if one was trying to be inconspicuous.

When she got to her destination the gatekeeper didn't want to let her in at first, but a gun aimed at his face made him reconsider her demand. She stormed over to the mansion and pounded on the door, and the eye slit opened just like before.

"You followed me all the way back here?" Moose's gravelly voice asked, "I didn't know you cared."

"This isn't what we agreed on!" Femme Fatale snapped without preamble.

"Oh? It's 1.5 million dollars. That wasn't our agreement?" Moose asked with mock innocence.

"These are bills!" Femme Fatale shouted accusingly, "I wanted coins! Susan B Anthony and Sacajawea coins!"

"Shh! You're gonna alert the whole neighborhood, you crazy dame," Moose warned her.

"What did you just call me, you toad?" Femme Fatale asked crossly.

"Either take the money or leave it here," Moose insisted, "That's your payment, and if you know what's good for ya you'll hold up your end of the bargain."

Femme Fatale roared in anger and kicked the locked door down! Moose fell backwards but recovered quickly enough to draw his gun. Femme Fatale drew her gun as well and dropped the sack of money, so both of them were aiming at each other.

"This wasn't our deal," Femme Fatale growled, "I won't accept payment with a _man's_ picture on it."

"Too bad, because that's how most money is made," Moose pointed out, "Look, we tried to get your stupid lady coins, but there wasn't enough of 'em. Now, take your money and go get those stinkin' Powerpuffs!"

"Not until you give me what was promised me," Femme Fatale pressed, "I want real money, not a symbol of the patriarchy!"

Moose answered by cocking back his old fashioned revolver, and Femme Fatale answered that silent warning by aiming her laser gun for Moose's head. It was a tension that seemed destined to end in someone's death, but then a huge shadow fell over both of them with thundering footsteps harkening the entry of a new player. Moose looked behind him with far less confidence than he showed a moment ago, and Femme Fatale would have taken the moment to fire, except she had a feeling things were about to get interesting.

"Moose, what's going on here?" A very tall very fat man asked the tiny trench coat wearing flunky.

"A slight c-complication, boss," Moose stammered, "I'm handling it."

Femme Fatale knew the guy's name was Mr. Big, but she hadn't known the half of it. This man must have been at least 8 feet tall, and probably five feet wide. He wore a fancy black suit and a black oversized fedora that obscured everything about his face except his nose and mouth. Fatale couldn't help but think that no amount of black in the world could slim that figure, yet there was something about the way he moved that said he was more powerful than his doughy appearance would indicate. It reminded her of the Kingpin character from the Spider-Man comics. She always hated that character, and she suspected she would hate Mr. Big too.

"What happened?" Mr. Big asked Moose.

"The Girl Scout doesn't want the money," Moose told his boss, "Apparently she don't understand the concept of dollar bills. I'm sure we can find you someone else to off the 'Puffs."

"I'll do the job, but only if I actually get what I was promised," Femme Fatale reiterated, "I said I wanted coins, and you gave me bills. I said I wanted women on my money, and you gave me men. You don't listen!"

"How would you even spend lady coins anyway?" Moose scoffed, "That's not _real money_."

"That's it!" Femme Fatale shouted as she stuck her gun in Moose's face.

She was going to fire the gun and melt Moose's head off, but Mr. Big redirected her shot to the wall. Femme Fatale was taken off guard by how strong this guy was, and how effortless he made his actions look.

"I got an idea," Mr. Big said, and Femme Fatale braced for the worst, "Why don't we pay you on the computer?"

"Huh?" Femme Fatale grunted in confusion.

"Yeah, we send you electronic money, and you won't have to know if there are ladies on the money or not," Mr. Big replied with a smile, but Femme Fatale couldn't tell if the smile was warm or predatory, "Then you take care of the Powerpuff Girls, and we give you more money. Sound good?"

"I, uh, don't have a PayMe account," Femme Fatale replied sheepishly.

"Moose will help you set it up," Mr. Big replied helpfully, "Change your password afterward though. Don't want anyone stealing your money."

"Um...okay," Femme Fatale conceded, not entirely sure why this was going so smoothly.

Mr. Big turned around in the spacious hallways and went back to his office with Moose and Femme Fatale following him. She understood now why everything in the house seemed so oversized. If this guy wasn't a giant he sure was close. She knew better than to trust his affable demeanor however. That jolly fat man ran one of the most lucrative crime rings in the area, and one of the most secretive. She feared he would have her killed after he was through with her, but she was ready. She was strong enough and clever enough to take on any of Mr. Big's goons, or even Mr. Big himself.

* * *

For three days Blossom, Buttercup, and Butch had searched for any clues on Mr. Big and his crime ring. Bubbles gave up after the first day because she couldn't handle any real confrontations. Too many of those hoods and lowlives reminded her of..._that _day. She decided to stay home and guard the professor. She knew she could fight if the professor's life depended on it, but nothing else would keep her away from her online games and amigurumi.

Even as the flashbacks threatened to return Bubbles did her best to ignore her own masochistic mind. Bubbles fought to forget what was happening and just focus on defeating the virtual robots in her game. She cleared another building and had collected the treasure when the professor hollered up the stairs.

"_What_?" Bubbles hollered back since she didn't hear him.

"I said telephone for you, Bubbles!" Professor shouted up the stairs.

Bubbles had to leave the room to answer the phone. She still remembered when they had the hotline in their room and the mayor would call the Powerpuff Girls to save the day. It felt like yesterday, yet also like an eternity ago. Now Blossom just carried a hotline smartphone since she was the only one that fought crime anymore anyway. Then again, a smartphone would've worked regardless of whether they were still a team or not. Blossom was always the one that answered the old phone.

Bubbles picked up the cordless landline they still had for some reason, and was surprised by the voice she heard on the other end of the line.

"Bubbles, it's Princess Morebucks."

_Princess_. She hadn't seen Princess in years. The last time Princess tried to do anything evil was 5 years ago. Bubbles hadn't been there, but she still remembered the aftermath...

"Bribe yourself out of anymore crimes, Princess?" Bubbles asked icily.

"No, Bubbles," Princess replied snidely, "Is Blossom available? I need to speak to a _real_ Powerpuff Girl."

"Wow, how are you still this much of a brat?" Bubbles asked almost playfully, not phased by Princess's taunting.

"Hey, you were the one bringing up old times," Princess pointed out, "I actually called to help your sister with something, but if you want to ruin an opportunity to learn about a super villain-"

"No, no!" Bubbles cut her off quickly, "I'm on my way."

"I said I didn't want you!" Princess shouted rudely, "I want Blossom! You're not a Powerpuff Girl anymore. Just the secretary."

Bubbles slammed the phone back on the charger and groaned in frustration. She tried, she _really_ tried to not hate people. Princess however was just so...punchable. As many baddies as Bubbles had beaten up in her life none were as bratty and punchable as Princess. Still, with the others searching for clues about the Saga Cartel, Bubbles was the only one left to meet with the spoiled CEO. Steeling herself for the stress that would ensue, Bubbles flew out the open window toward Morebuck Mega Corporation Inc.

* * *

Moose and Femme Fatale managed to set up an electronic payment system for the villainess, all the while Mr. Big sat at his desk and ate a box of cheap supermarket donuts. The longer Femme Fatale looked at the mob boss the sicker she got. In the time they had been in the same room together he had scratched his butt, picked his nose, scratched his crotch, and then used that same hand to pick up powdered sugar donuts to shovel into his big mouth. Yep, if Femme Fatale didn't think men were disgusting before, she certainly thought so now.

"Alright boss, the Girl Scout has the first half of the money," Moose announced, but then muttered, "Awful expensive pet food if you ask me..."

"What are you talking about?" Femme Fatale asked suspiciously.

"Oh, yeah. Thank you for reminding me, Moose," Mr. Big said as he got up from his black leather chair, "I wanted to show you around my home. I especially want to show you Fluffy."

"Fluffy?" Femme Fatale asked skeptically, "As much as I like cats I really don't have time to stick around for this."

"Fluffy is my python," Mr. Big clarified, "She's _really_ big! I think you'll like her."

Femme Fatale raised an eyebrow at how unabashedly excited Mr. Big sounded to show off his pet snake. He seemed to flip from a slow sinister demeanor to an almost childlike personality in the blink of an eye. That did not bode well in Femme Fatale's mind. Crooks that tried to look innocent usually had the bloodiest skeletons in their closets.

"I don't want to see your snake, Mr. Big," Femme Fatale said disdainfully even as he walked closer to her, "I need to get home, and the last bus of the evening leaves in 20 minutes."

"No!" Mr. Big suddenly shouted as he grabbed her arm.

Femme Fatale hissed in pain, not ready for such a massive iron grip around her wrist and forearm. She glared up at him, feeling vindicated at seeing his true colors.

"You're not taking the bus," Mr. Big stated in a calmer tone than a moment before, "No member of the Saga Cartel rides with the little people. You work for me now, so you're one of us."

"Well then how the crap am I supposed to get home?" Femme Fatale asked sharply.

"Mr. Big will drive you," Mr. Big said smoothly, and Femme Fatale scowled.

"I don't want to ride anywhere with you," Femme Fatale stated firmly, "And I am not your stooge. I am a freelance assassin, and I want to take the bus home. Now let go of my arm, you big ape!"

"Mr. Big won't take no for an answer," Mr. Big replied calmly, not turning loose of Femme Fatale.

Femme Fatale bit her lip and growled in anger. She didn't like being bossed around by some power hungry man, and to have one threatening her at the same time he was pretending to perform a kindness was even worse. He was trying to impress her with his possessions and dominate her with his physical strength. She wanted nothing more than to shoot this condescending tub of lard, but she could still make a lot of money off him, so she ground her teeth and nodded.

"Great!" Mr. Big replied happily, "This is gonna be fun."

Femme Fatale walked with Mr. Big as he led her by the arm, and once or twice during their walk down the hall she 'accidentally' kicked him in the back of his heels. He didn't seem to mind though, which only made the villainess even madder. When they got to the garage, it was packed with luxury cars both old and new, each one kept spotlessly clean.

"Typical," Femme Fatale muttered under her breath, "Men just _love_ their cars."

Mr. Big then went over to a vending machine that had keys inside instead of snacks.

"Pick which car you want us to drive," Mr. Big requested as he motioned to the machine.

"Fine, but only if I get to drive it," Femme Fatale replied contrarily, "Of course you're probably too much of a _big strong man_ to allow a woman to drive one of your precious collectible cars. Am I right?"

"You can drive if you want," Mr. Big replied agreeably, "But Mr. Big has to ride with you so you get home safe."

Femme Fatale narrowed her eyes at Mr. Big, not expecting him to relent so easily. She told him she wanted the silver Lamborghini Conthatch, and he punched in a number on the machine. She snatched the key right out of his hand before he could change his mind, and together they took off for her house.

Just as Mr. Big and Femme Fatale were leaving however, a blue streak of light was headed for their neighborhood to visit a certain CEO that lived next door to the cartel kingpin.

Bubbles flew into an open window that happened to lead to the room where Princess was sitting, and Princess didn't even turn around as she said, "You know you could've used the door, Powerpuff."

"Alright, I showed up, now what's this important information you wanted to talk to me about?" Bubbles demanded.

"I wanted to talk to a real Powerpuff Girl," Princess restated, "But if all I have is you then I'll make the best of it. I've noticed some odd activity going on next door."

"This better not be a trick to get us to beat up your neighbors," Bubbles warned.

"It isn't, not this time," Princess assured her, "There's been this weird chick standing outside the mansion next door yelling about not being paid her money. At first I thought it was a domestic issue, but then I noticed how strangely she was dressed. She looked like some third wave feminist disco dancer, so I looked it up online to see if I could figure out who she was or where she got that awful costume, and then it clicked."

"What clicked?" Bubbles asked.

"She _is_ a super villain, but not a recent one," Princess declared, "Her name was Femme Fatale. You Powerpuff Girls defeated her fifteen years ago. You know, when you guys were still good at your jobs."

Bubbles fumed at Princess's dig, but the CEO continued on with describing her detective work.

"So I looked up Femme Fatale, and she just got out of prison a few days ago. Gotta say she didn't waste any time. I'm almost impressed."

"Is this going somewhere?" Bubbles asked impatiently.

"Uh, _yeah_, I'm getting to that!" Princess snapped, "Anyway, I still have my old account on townsvillains,edu and decided to see if she had an account. Turns out she does, and she lists her current job as 'assassin'. Femme Fatale has upgraded from robbery to murder. I think my neighbors have taken out a hit on someone, but I don't know who it is yet."

"Well, who lives in that mansion? What do you know about them?" Bubbles inquired.

"Not much," Princess admitted, "I know they throw a lot of parties. It's kinda funny really, because they have that big concrete swimming pool but it's never filled with water. It's usually filled with drunk party goers drinking kegs of beer like it's a mosh pit. Honestly, I hate my new neighbors. I've considered moving most of my stuff to the summer home, but my neighbors there are members of the Smith Family, and I don't feel like getting shot over a drug deal gone wrong."

"That stuff isn't relevant!" Bubbles shouted irritably, "Princess, do you know of any enemies your neighbors have? If Femme Fatale is trying to kill someone then they need protection!"

"No, I don't know!" Princess yelled.

"Well do you at least know their names?" Bubbles asked.

"No, I...uh...I guess I...never introduced myself," Princess sheepishly admitted, "I've just been so busy with work. There are products to approve, invoices to look over, board meetings, executive retreats, and so many more things I can barely keep track of. I don't know how Daddy did it for so long! Even now I'm pushing back a luncheon to talk to you."

"Well thank you for taking the time, I guess," Bubbles replied awkwardly, trying and failing to sound grateful.

"You know Bubbles, I can't help but think back to the first time I met you and your bratty sisters," Princess suddenly said.

"Gee, look at the pot calling the kettle black," Bubbles remarked as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I had never seen anything like you before," Princess continued as if she hadn't heard Bubbles, "You girls were everything I wanted to be, and had everything I wanted to have. Most little girls dream about being Disney princesses or pop stars or something. Do you know who I always wanted to be like? Batman. My favorite superhero was Batman, because he didn't have powers or parents or anything to help him except his resources, yet he managed to be the smartest most capable superhero ever. I always wanted to be super, just like Batman," Princess then scoffed at herself and said, "I look at my life now though, and I'm no Batman. I'm Lex Luthor. I'm Daddy. This isn't what I wanted. To be fair though, I guess all little kids are stupid..."

Bubbles just sat there in silence and listened to Princess lament. She didn't really know what to say. They were fighting a moment ago, so it was odd to Bubbles that Princess would suddenly confide in her. She didn't know how to comfort someone that annoyed her so much for so many years. Bubbles looked at Princess, really _looked_ at her, for the first time in years. What she saw was not the bratty bully that tormented her school years. She saw a stressed out woman that barely had time for anything anymore.

"I don't think you're Lex Luthor," Bubbles finally said.

"No?" Princess asked sullenly.

"No, I think you're Ms. Bellum," Bubbles said with a cheeky smile.

"Who? The lady running for mayor?" Princess asked uncomprehendingly.

"Yeah. Before she became a politician she was the mayor's assistant," Bubbles explained, "She worked harder than anyone else I'd ever met. She was always tired and overworked, yet she still always gave her best. Trust me, it's a compliment to be compared to Ms. Bellum."

"Thank you, Bubbles," Princess replied in bemusement, "That, uh, means a lot to me. I'll keep you posted if I learn anything more about Femme Fatale and the neighbors."

"Okay, thanks," Bubbles replied as she floated toward the window to leave.

Princess didn't even watch Bubbles exit since she had a golf game with the CEO of Goody Goody Gumdrop Corp. Bubbles didn't exactly like Princess, but she was glad for once to have another set of eyes and ears on the case. With the girls pooling their resources searching for Mr. Big, learning more about Femme Fatale would stretch their resources too thin.

"Then again, maybe we could assign Butch to the case," Bubbles mused, "At least then he'll stop torturing potential witnesses. Tee hee hee!"

* * *

Femme Fatale drove as fast as she could without being conspicuous. She was calculating in her head where she would take the car. There was no way she could drive all the way to her penthouse in this thing. Then Mr. Big would know where she lived, and given his unpredictable nature she would prefer to keep her residence a secret for the moment.

The drive had been mostly quiet, with Mr. Big just looking at the scenery the whole way there. Femme Fatale was grateful she didn't have to talk to him, but she knew he was up to something. She just had to figure out what. She knew he needed an assassin, but she also got the feeling he had another plan besides that. She wouldn't let her guard down around him though. Whatever he had planned, she would be ready. Just as she was convincing herself she was ready for anything however, Mr. Big surprised her again...by taking a stuffed purple octopus out of his coat pocket and playing with it.

"Aren't you too old for stuffed animals?" Femme Fatale remarked critically.

"It's Bubbles' toy," Mr. Big explained, "Mr. Big took it from the Powerpuff house."

"You broke into their house, and only stole a stuffed animal?" Femme Fatale asked flatly.

"No, we also stole the fridge and the couch," Mr. Big replied, unperturbed, "Mr. Big wanted this especially though. Bubbles loves this toy. Mr. Big is gonna send it back one tentacle at a time."

"You're destroying a stuffed animal to psychologically torment a Powerpuff Girl," Femme Fatale repeated disdainfully, "You do realize the girls are adults now? I may be out of the loop but even I know a grown woman isn't going to care if you rip up her stuffed animal. She can just fix it."

"It sends a message," Mr. Big replied, a dark edge to his formerly genial voice, "Mr. Big wants the Powerpuff Girls dead, but not right away. First we attack their favorite items, then we go after their friends, and then finally we take their daddy. The girls will beg for death by the time you get to them. It's already started."

"It's almost a shame to kill them," Femme Fatale said wistfully, "There aren't enough competent women out there challenging the system that has kept us down for so long. It's just a shame their career is in opposition to mine, otherwise I'd let them go. Mr. Big, up until now I assumed you just wanted the girls gone so you could take over Townsville, but nobody acts like this unless they have a vendetta against someone. Tell me, why do the girls mean so much to you?"

"Mr. Big can't sleep."

"Um, I don't follow," Femme Fatale replied.

"You don't have to follow. You're driving," Mr. Big said with a grin.

Femme Fatale didn't understand the metaphor the oversized gangster was going for. Did he mean she was the assassin and she shouldn't ask questions? Was it a threat? A warning? A compliment? Femme Fatale had trouble reading this guy's emotions when he spoke in that slow halting voice, and it was almost spooky how calm he stayed no matter what he was talking about.

She decided to go to a parking garage that was three blocks from her penthouse. Femme Fatale pulled into a parking space and got out of the car, allowing Mr. Big to get out and get in the driver's seat. She thought he was looking at her, but with that fedora covering his eyes she couldn't tell.

"Mr. Big had a great time," The titular gangster said contentedly, "Do you like this car?"

"Ugh, _here we go_! Trying to impress me with a set of wheels," Femme Fatale ranted, "Like I've never seen this before. It's practically page one in the rich pervert's handbook. Listen Big, I'll do my job, and I'll do it as well as any man ever could, but I will not use my body to get ahead in your little organization. Do you understand me?"

"No," Mr. Big replied.

"_No_?" Femme Fatale repeated incredulously, "Well then understand this, no shiny car is going to make me like you!"

"So you do like the car?" Mr. Big asked for clarification.

"Oh my god, what do you want from me, you chauvinistic pig!?" Femme Fatale screamed.

"To give you the car," Mr. Big replied in a much more stoic tone than Femme Fatale.

"You want to give me the car?" Femme Fatale asked in disbelief, and Mr. Big nodded, "Why?"

"Like I said, no member of the Saga Cartel takes the bus," Mr. Big replied with another one of those wide unreadable smiles.

Mr. Big then took her hand and placed the keys in her palm. He then walked off, and only then did Femme Fatale realize they had been followed in a red Mazzarati by Moose. Mr. Big got in Moose's car and they drove away, leaving Femme Fatale with a new Lambourghini and a lot of questions.


	4. The Smiths

_Author's Notes: Hi guys, and welcome to a new chapter of the fic! This story has been an odd one to write, as on the one hand the tone is one of intrigue and is mostly played straight, yet there's enough over-the-top mob cliches to keep the cartoony nature intact. So, I hope these two sides of the story blend okay. thank you for reading, and if you'd like to please review :)_

* * *

Chapter 4

The Smiths

Femme Fatale knew if she was going to defeat the Powerpuff Girls once and for all then she was going to need weapons. Powerful weapons. Weapons that would make the likes of Mojo Jojo green with envy. With this in mind, Femme Fatale flipped through her Rolodex to see if there were any contacts that could aid her in her mission.

"Hm, let's see...Sedusa?" Femme Fatale read off, "No, she's with that pig Major Man. Hm...Maskara? No, she isn't really the total destruction type. More of a joke, really. Ah, here's someone that was paroled ten years ago. I bet she has some great connections now."

Femme Fatale then dialed the number, and was met with a lengthy hold menu.

_Welcome to the Smith Family hotline. For legitimate business transactions with Smith Applied Chemicals press 1. For legitimate business transactions with the Smith Foundation for Family Welfare press 2. For the complaints department please hang up now. For sales press 3. For illegal activity press 4._

"Finally!" Femme Fatale growled as she pressed 4.

_You have pressed 4. For drug trafficking press 1. For gun running press 2._

Femme Fatale pressed 2.

_Hold please while we connect you to a representative. Please enjoy this soothing music while you wait. _

Femme Fatale then had to endure 10 minutes of an easy listening version of The Macarena while she waited for someone to answer her call. This was a lot more annoying than she had originally thought, but hopefully she would finally be able to get in touch with-

"Hello, and thank you for calling the Smith Family weapons cache office," A perky sales rep on the other line said, "Are you looking to buy, sell, or trade?"

"Ugh! I'm trying to get in touch with Mary Ann Smith," Femme Fatale snapped irritably, "Do you have a number I could call to get in touch with her? I'm an old friend from prison."

"Well, I'll see what I can do," The rep replied uncertainly, "Do you have a name I can give her?"

"Yes, Femme Fatale," The titular villainess replied, "If she doesn't recognize that name, then...say Greta Blimpkin. Also, if I don't get in touch with her by phone, there will be repercussions _in person_," After that dark threat Femme Fatale jovially added, "Oh, and tell her I tried her lemon squares recipe and it was fantastic!"

"Will do," The rep replied, "Have a villainous day."

The rep then hung up, and Femme Fatale felt like she had wasted far too much time on that stupid phone. She just hoped it would be worth it. She just had to make sure to not mention her employer was Mr. Big, since the Saga Cartel and the Smith Family were bitter rivals. If Mary Ann found out Femme Fatale was working with that overfed ogre then she would probably be offed by one of the Smith's goons. Of course of Mr. Big found out the weapons came from the Smiths, then he would probably fly off into a rage and strangle her. This felt like a no win situation, yet Femme Fatale believed herself smarter than both parties and able to play them both to her advantage.

* * *

"I don't know about this, Buttercup," Bubbles said nervously.

"Trust me, Bubbles. You need this," Buttercup replied assuringly, "Butch and I come here all the time, and it's a great way to relieve stress. And if anyone was ever stressed! Ha!"

Bubbles didn't know why she was so nervous. An ice cream parlor wasn't that scary a place, but for some reason investigating the Saga Cartel made Bubbles more nervous than usual. She feared leaving the professor alone, and she worried they were being watched. She had just wanted to stay inside and make another baby turtle out of yarn, but Buttercup and Butch had insisted she come with them to their favorite restaurant in Townsville, Gloopy's Globs of Ice Cream.

"We're hoping to win enough prize money from next week's monster match to rent the back room of Gloopy's for a couple hours," Butch told Bubbles.

"You can do that?" Bubbles asked in surprise.

"The back room is where people can play an ice cream version of paint ball," Butch explained, "It's totally awesome!"

"Yeah! One time we went in with Brick and Boomer on the room, and they brought their girlfriends with them," Buttercup recounted, "We were all Bam! Pow! Sploosh! Zap!"

"The _zap_ part is where all the ice cream melted because of stupid Brick's laser vision," Butch smirked, "Nothin' like pushing losers into a pool of melted ice cream. Hah!"

"That sounds like a terrible idea," Bubbles cringed, "I mean, a bunch of sticky ice cream all over my beautiful golden hair? No thanks!"

"Is it just a blonde thing?" Butch asked Buttercup, "You know Boomer cried after I pushed him. He's such a baby."

"You really should be nicer to your brother," Buttercup admonished him, "I mean, what if you need a kidney or something someday?"

"Do we even have kidneys?" Butch asked in confusion.

Before Buttercup could answer the door to the ice cream shop opened again, and while the green couple ignored it Bubbles took notice of the person that came through the door. It wasn't anyone Bubbles knew, just a nondescript citizen of Townsville. What Bubbles couldn't take her eyes off however was the sunglasses the man was wearing. They were pointed at the edges and pitch black...just like Ace's used to be.

While Buttercup and Butch continued to debate whether or not they had organs Bubbles was far away from the restaurant and them. Her mind was flying over the water of Townsville's coast as a hijacked bus careened off the edge of a cliff. She was swimming in the cold dark water searching for survivors. She was on her couch as the news came on and showed Ace's bloated blue body laid out on the beach. Her eyes stared straight ahead, and her mind tortured her once again.

"Bubbles? Hey Bubbles!" Buttercup called out for probably the fourth time, "Hey! Are you okay? Snap out of it!"

"What's wrong with her?" Butch asked derisively.

"I told you, she does this sometimes," Buttercup replied, "She'll snap out of it in a minute. I just hope she doesn't scream this time."

Bubbles then jolted as if awakening from a dream, and Buttercup went over to Bubbles' side of the booth and patted her back comfortingly.

"It's okay Bubbles," Buttercup said soothingly, "You're at Gloopy's, everything's fine, nobody's in danger. You're safe."

"Buttercup, I really want to go home now," Bubbles said in a soft miserable voice.

"What? But we haven't even ordered yet!" Butch whined.

"Shut up, Butch!" Buttercup snapped at her boyfriend, and then to Bubbles said, "You can fly home if you want to. Butch and I will stay here. Is that okay, or do you need me to fly you home?"

"No, I'm okay," Bubbles replied halfheartedly.

Bubbles then excused herself and left. Buttercup worried about her sister making it home alright, but at the same time she'd promised Butch they could have a fun time together while they were in Townsville. Bubbles said she was okay, so Buttercup decided to take her word for it.

As Bubbles flew into the clouds she tried to let the wind take her pain away. The problem was the wind felt the same as it did the day she failed her fateful mission. She wanted to live in the present moment, but her mind kept going back to when that bus fell in the water and when the Gangreen Gang drowned. How could she stop the Saga Cartel from hurting any more people when she couldn't even stop a bunch of small time hoods from joyriding a bus without collateral damage?

As Bubbles flew into the window of her house she ran into the bathroom and locked the door. She sat on the cold tile floor and just breathed in and out. For some reason cold things made her feel better, and after this episode she would probably look through some adorable baby animal videos to cheer herself up. She knew she would feel better soon enough, but she just needed some time alone.

* * *

Femme Fatale had waited two days for Mary Ann Smith to call her back with no results, so she decided she was sick of playing by the rules. She drove to Smith Applied Chemicals where she knew Mary Ann usually worked on weekdays. She was going to meet with that mob queen face to face and _make_ Mary Ann sell her some Powerpuff pulverizing weapons.

As Femme Fatale stormed past the receptionist everyone looked at the villainess with the outdated wardrobe and large gun in her hand with confusion. It wasn't uncommon to see villains enter a Smith operation, but they normally weren't so blatant about it. It didn't take long for security to notice Femme Fatale and apprehend her.

"Let me go, you disgusting animals!" Femme Fatale roared at the guards who were holding her by either arm, "Do you know who I am?!"

"Lemme guess, Pamela Anderson?" One of the guards joked.

"_Grr_," Femme Fatale could do little more than growl as her gun was taken from her and the guards pushed her toward the exit.

Just as the guards and Femme Fatale were almost to the door, a well dressed woman with tan skin, a black business suit, and short greying blonde hair entered the building. She was looking down at her smartphone and her heels echoed on the tile floors in the cavernous lobby. When she got to the chaos that was Femme Fatale and the guards however, she stopped.

"Greta?" Mary Ann Smith asked in recognition, "My goodness, this is unexpected. I didn't know you were up for release. Johnson, Meyers, please release my guest."

The guards did as instructed and Femme Fatale wiped aggressively at her costume where they had touched it, as if their manly germs would infect her.

"I'm going to my office to file some paperwork. Join me," Mary Ann ordered in a voice that left no room for argument.

One long and awkward elevator ride later Femme Fatale and Mary Ann Smith were in a grand office on the top floor of the skyscraper. Even the clouds seemed to be below the office, and Femme Fatale couldn't help but be impressed. Mary Ann of course treated this as just another meeting and barely even looked at her fellow villainess as she sat at her desk and flipped through some papers.

"Harold is out on the campaign trail," Mary Ann said offhandedly as Femme Fatale fidgeted in her seat across the desk, "This mayoral race has been loads of fun, and I must say seeing Harold vie for a position of leadership has done _wonders_ for our marriage. So, how's life on the outside treating you so far, Greta?"

"I go by the name Femme Fatale," She corrected.

"Still?" Mary Ann asked in mock surprise, "You poor dear woman. I understand. Prison can lead to arrested development. I see it happen all the time to my employees. They return to duty and haven't changed at all. Of course that usually leads to them getting caught again. I mean just look at you, dear. A few more wrinkles but otherwise unchanged. You really should cut your hair. I think a pixie cut would look wonderful on you."

"I don't care about my looks," Femme Fatale stated, "Beauty culture is just another way that the patriarchy insists we conform to their standards of what a woman should be. Putting ourselves on display and submitting ourselves to what _they_ want to look at."

"Greta, beauty isn't a set of shackles, it's a whip," Mary Ann replied deviously, "And what really matters is who's holding that whip. Beauty is the most accessible form of power we women have, and there's nothing wrong with capitalizing on it."

"I used to feel the same way," Femme Fatale admitted, "But when you're beautiful it just tells men that you're available."

"It also tells other women you're a threat," Mary Ann grinned, "Honey, take it from someone older and wiser: you don't get to be beautiful forever. Use it while you have it."

"For what? Catching a man like you did?" Femme Fatale replied contemptuously.

"If you want," Mary Ann replied indifferently, "Harold is a better catch than you'd think. He's malleable enough to listen to me, unassuming enough to fit into every part of society, and ambitious enough to push this family forward into the fortune that we currently enjoy today. Sure, I'm the real brains of our empire, but I couldn't do it without Harold. We're a team. Why wouldn't you want someone by your side that shares your goals and makes you stronger?"

"_Stronger_? Men make us weaker!" Femme Fatale countered, "For thousands of years men have told us how we are supposed to look, what we are supposed to feel, how we are supposed to express those feelings, and kept us enslaved to their pleasure and making babies! We don't need them!"

"Hahahaha," Mary Ann laughed, which only made Femme Fatale fume even more, "We don't need them? Oh, Greta! The human race would die without them, just as it would die without us. I agree that once a woman obtains power she should never let it go, but to eschew a family for the sake of a bitter grudge against half the population just seems self-destructive. Besides, I for one wouldn't trade the world for my children. Bud and Julie are both strong willed, intelligent, evil little angels. I suppose you just can't understand until you've had children of your own."

Femme Fatale was starting to remember why she hated being cellmates with Mary Ann Smith. Mary Ann was a smug and condescending woman even back then, and she insisted that only ugly women didn't get married and start families. Femme Fatale hated people that insisted family and domesticity was the answer to everything, and it was made even worse coming from the mouth of another woman.

"Now Greta, what was it you wanted exactly?" Mary Ann asked, finally ready to get down to business.

"Ah, yes. I want to procure-" But before Femme Fatale could finish her sentence there was a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" Mary Ann asked sweetly, ignoring Femme Fatale's annoyed glare.

"It's me, Mary Ann," A nasally male voice replied, "Can I come in?"

"Of course, Harold. I'm not doing anything," Mary Ann replied with a nonchalance that made Femme Fatale's blood boil.

An aging bald man with squared glasses and a big nose shambled into the room. He was wearing a brown business suit that seemed wrinkled with prolonged wear, and he was nervously scrunching up a hat in his hands.

"How's the campaign trail, dear?" Mary Ann asked her husband.

"Oh, um, it's fine Mary Ann," Harold stammered, "Um, I was just speaking with our associate Rex Hancock, and he, um, mentioned, uh...well..."

"_Spit it out, Harold_!" Mary Ann suddenly screamed at him.

"Yah! HeSaidTheSagaCartelStoleAnotherShipment!" Harold quickly replied.

"Could you repeat that, sweetheart?" Mary Ann replied with forced calm.

"Well, he said our shipment of...um, am I free to speak with this woman in the room?" Harold suddenly asked.

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" Femme Fatale asked crossly.

"It's fine, Harold. She's an old friend," Mary Ann dismissed his concerns, "Now, shipment of what?"

"Cocaine," Harold said timidly, "The Saga Cartel found out about our latest boat load of cocaine, and they stole it."

"Covertly or upfront?" Mary Ann asked.

"One of their members pretended to be me and signed for the shipment, and then drove away with it in several trucks," Harold explained, "We don't know exactly what the trucks look like, but according to the security footage the man in charge of the operation was the one they call 'Moose'."

Femme Fatale covered her mouth so the couple wouldn't see her smirk. As much as she disliked Moose and the Saga Cartel, she had to admit to herself that it was satisfying seeing someone get the best of the Smiths.

"Ah yes, Moose," Mary Ann commented wryly, "I've seen him around. We tried bribing him to join our side, but he felt Mr. Big gives him more freedom to be..._creative_, in his work. His words. Any word on locating Mr. Big?"

"Nothing," Harold replied, "If I didn't know any better, I would say Mr. Big doesn't even exist. He's never at their crime scenes, and every goon we've captured has been too afraid to talk. The closest to a physical description we have is that he's big and ugly, which frankly even I could have guessed."

As the Smiths talked about the situation, Femme Fatale got an idea. She knew how she could get all the money she'd ever need to start her own criminal empire, get rid of the Powerpuff Girls, and get rid of both major crime families in Townsville. She just had to stay two steps ahead of her competition.

"You want Mr. Big, huh?" Femme Fatale suddenly said, interrupting their conversation, "What if I told you I knew where he lived and what he looks like?"

"I would say you're lying," Mary Ann replied with that patronizing smile she was so good at, "You've only been out of prison for a few weeks at best. Do you know how long it takes to get in good with the Saga Cartel? One of our boys tried it, and by the time he made it up in the ranks to meet Moose they figured out he was a double agent and killed him."

"I know where he is," Femme Fatale replied firmly, "And I'll help you take him down for good, if you help me in return."

"Really?" Mary Ann asked, unconvinced.

"Really," Femme Fatale smiled wickedly, "You know how I feel about male dominated syndicates. At least you and Harold share equal power. We girls gotta stick together, right?"

"Very well then, tell us where he is," Mary Ann ordered.

"Not so fast," Femme Fatale held up a hand, "I know my information is valuable, and I'm not about to give it away for free."

"What do you want?" Mary Ann asked, finally dropping the sweet act and scowling at Femme Fatale.

"A million dollars electronically transferred to my PayMe account, and the most powerful weapons you've got," Femme Fatale replied, "I plan to take out the Powerpuff Girls, and I need something that even those brats can't stand up against."

"Is that all?" Mary Ann asked lightheartedly, "Why, I'd pay that just for taking out _one_ of the Powerpuff Girls! To get rid of them _and_ Mr. Big, why that price is a steal."

"Then you'll understand that I want the weapons first," Femme Fatale negotiated, "I want to make sure you actually give me your best, and the only way to know that is to test them out. If the weapons work, then you give me the money in exchange for everything I know about Mr. Big and his cartel."

"That sounds fair," Mary Ann nodded, "Of course if you double cross me I'll kill you."

"Of course. Standard villain contract," Femme Fatale replied dismissively.

Mary Ann then pulled out a paper for Femme Fatale to sign, and ordered Harold to prepare their finest laser weapons and plasma cannons for their new informant. This was working out even better than Femme Fatale had hoped. She would bleed the Smiths dry of their best weapons, defeat the Powerpuff Girls, get the Smiths to kill the Saga Cartel, and then use the weapons to destroy the Smiths. With all the money and power at her command, Femme Fatale was going to be the most powerful villain Townsville had ever seen!


	5. Going Nowhere

_Author's Notes: Thank you all for tuning in to the new chapter of Mr. Big. This story feels like my most reference-heavy PPG fic, which gives me so many opportunities to write quirky scenarios. This chapter isn't what I expected to write when I sat down and started, but I still think it turned out okay. Thank you all for reading, and leave a review if you feel like it :)_

* * *

Chapter 5

Going Nowhere

Bubbles was almost asleep. It was around 11:30 PM and everything was quiet. Butch and Buttercup had flown back to Monster Island, but were coming back the next day to help continue the investigation into the Saga Cartel. Blossom was back at her college dorm room and had said she wasn't sure if she would be able to do much more for the investigation without any further leads. Bubbles understood that. Blossom had a lot of responsibilities between her school work and saving the day. It was a life that Bubbles didn't miss...most of the time. Sometimes she missed the thrill, but most days her heart ached for the pain she knew she caused as a superhero.

Everything was peaceful and still as the stars twinkled innocuously in the sky through her window, but then that blissful silence was broken when a downstairs window smashed!

Bubbles jolted upright, fearing the worst, and she quickly flew out of her bedroom. She saw the professor had also woke up and was carrying a golf club just in case he had to help fight off an intruder.

Together they snuck down to see if whoever broke their window was inside the house, but there was no one there. They looked outside, but there were no signs of whoever it could have been. They then looked around the house for clues, and the professor found a brick lying on the floor.

"Who would do such a thing?" The professor asked disheartenedly.

"Hm, it looks like there's something tied to the other side," Bubbles noted.

Bubbles took the piece of paper tied to the brick, and when she unfurled it there was a piece of Octi's head and some stuffing! Bubbles gasped in horror, and then saw that there was a short note; written in the same beautiful font as the gold graffiti from the other day. It read: _Dear_ _PPG. Sorry about your toy. Won't be sorry when it's you. Love, Mr. Big. _

"That monster! He ripped up my Octi!" Bubbles cried out furiously, "He will pay!"

"Try to keep a clear head, Bubbles," The professor replied placatingly, "It's clear this nut job is just trying to torment you."

"How did he know about Octi!?" Bubbles asked angrily, "Who _is_ this guy? It isn't enough he knows where we live, but he seems to know everything about us. About me! Professor, we should probably move you to a hotel until we can find him. You're in danger here."

"Now Bubbles, I'm sure you and your sisters can figure this out before anything too serious happens," Professor replied without concern, "Why, I've seen you take on intergalactic space monsters, cosmic horrors, villainous invasions, and clowns. This is nothing you can't handle."

"That was the old me, Professor," Bubbles moped, "I'm not that naive little girl anymore. I know I have limitations, and I know I screw up. A lot. Mr. Big is trying to hurt us, and that means he'll try to hurt you. I can't put your life in my hands. I just can't. Please, just hide until we can figure this out. For your own safety, please?"

The professor hated seeing his precious little Bubbles doubt herself this way, but he knew one inspiring speech wouldn't change her mind. She had been in a state of borderline depression for years, and there wasn't much he could do about it. All he could do was support her until she was ready to save the day again.

"Alright Bubbles, I'll go. For your peace of mind," The professor said with an assuring smile.

"Thanks, Professor," Bubbles whispered gratefully.

* * *

The next day Buttercup and Butch went over what they could do to find out more about the Saga Cartel. The problem with finding anything out was it was a network of criminals that operated in tiers and levels that rarely communicated with anyone higher than them in their station. The Sagas were a well-oiled machine, and most of them wouldn't talk even if they were found out.

"We gotta find this Moose guy," Butch surmised, "His name comes up a lot. My guess is he's the real Mr. Big."

"What makes you say that?" Buttercup asked.

"Come on, who would actually call themselves Mr. Big?" Butch snorted, "I mean, it sounds like that 90s soft rock boy band. Moose McGregor probably made that name up so no one would know he was the real power in the cartel."

"Makes as much as anything else, I guess," Buttercup replied indifferently, "I don't care who it is though, as long as we get to kick Saga Cartel butt. They trashed our house, they broke our window, and the professor says Bubbles hasn't come out of her room since last night. I don't remember the last time I've seen her so bummed."

"It was just a stupid stuffed octopus," Butch scoffed.

"No Butch, that stupid octopus was the very first gift the professor ever gave her," Buttercup corrected, "She's had it since the day she was born. 20 years. It's not replaceable. All we gotta do is find the leader of the Saga Cartel and beat him up. Then the prison system can handle him."

"Why don't we just melt him with our laser vision?" Butch suggested.

"Eh, we'll see where the day leads us," Buttercup replied with a smirk.

Together the green-eyed couple flew back to Townsville, and when they got there Blossom was already in front of the house. She was about to take off flying, but then she saw Buttercup and Butch were coming her way.

"Hey Blossom, what's the hurry?" Buttercup asked.

"I just got a tip from the hotline," Blossom replied, "The Amoeba Boys called to say they found out who Mr. Big is."

"The Amoeba Boys? You mean those loser germs?" Butch snorted derisively, "If they were an actual illness it would be chicken pox, because those guys are nothing but a bunch of chickens!"

"That may be true, but right now it's our only lead," Blossom pointed out, "Come on!"

With those words the three supers flew off toward the Amoeba Boys' hideout; a condemned storefront that had the words AMOEBA BOYS SECRET HIDEOUT written in crudely penned sharpie on the door. Blossom opened the door first, and she was greeted with the sight of ten giant translucent amoebas wearing fedoras and newsboy hats just standing around doing nothing.

"Bossman?" Blossom called out, and the head Amoeba Boy wriggled over to her.

"Hello, Blossom," Bossman greeted her in his thick Brooklyn accent, "I see you and your fellow Powerpuffs came all the way down here just to hear our testimony."

"Yeah, to hear our testimony!" One of the Junior Amoebas, marked by a black newsboy hat, repeated.

"Uh...What's testimony?" One of the Slim Amoebas asked obliviously.

"Shaddup, Slim Number 4!" Bossman snapped, "Alright then, we got the information you want, see? You wanna know about Mr. Big, and we got the goods, but we want a little somethin' in return, see?"

"Ugh, is this gonna take long?" Butch asked impatiently.

"Not at all," Bossman assured them, "Now, what we want is simple, see? We just want a little respect."

"Yeah, a little respect!" A Junior parroted.

"So, we tell you what you wanna know, and you give us..." Bossman paused to think about what he wanted, "...Ten dollars!"

"Done," Blossom replied a little too quickly and handed him the money, "Now, who is Mr. Big and how can we find him?"

"Well..." Bossman leaned in close so he could speak quietly near Blossom, "Do you know the muffin man?"

"The muffin man?" Blossom asked skeptically.

"The muffin man!" Bossman exclaimed as if it were a big revelation.

"Do we have a muffin man?" Butch asked idiotically.

"Sure, his shop's on 7th Street," Buttercup informed him.

"Well, Mr. Big's the muffin man," Bossman said conspiratorially.

"The muffin man?" Blossom asked, not believing a word of this.

"The muffin man!" Bossman declared.

"Mr. Big's the muffin man?" Junior Number 2 asked obliviously.

"I told you that yesterday!" Bossman snapped.

"Fine. Thanks for the tip, Bossman," Blossom sighed, knowing it was the only lead they had, "Come on, girls! Uh, sorry Butch. Come on, Buttercup and Butch. Let's go talk to the muffin man!"

With that order the Powerpuffs and Rowdyruff flew away, and the dim-witted Amoeba Boys waved at them as they left.

Once the supers were gone Bossman turned to his cohorts and smiled evilly as he said, "Great job, boys! They didn't suspect a thing. Now phase one of our greatest criminal plan ever has been completed!"

"Uh...What do we do for phase two, Boss?" Slim Number 3 asked.

"Uh...I guess we wait..." Bossman replied anticlimactically.

The Amoeba Boys then went back to what they were doing before the Powerpuffs and Rowdyruff got there...absolutely nothing.

* * *

It was another stupid party! Princess ran her fingernails through her frazzled red hair and growled at the top of her lungs. She finally, _finally_, got a day off, and it was being ruined by her stupid neighbors and their stupid noise! Their stereo system practically shook her windows, and she could smell the booze even from the third story. It was bad enough she had discovered the assassin Femme Fatale working for them, but they also insisted on making her life miserable from afar.

"Stupid Bubbles..." Princess muttered, "What did I expect _her_ to do? She's such a baby. '_Wah wah, being a superhero is hard! Boo hoo! I'm so glamorous and alone!'_ Bah! What a joke!"

Princess continued to angrily mutter under her breath as she walked around her house trying to find some room where she wouldn't be able to hear the house party going on next door. All she wanted was to drink her organic açaí smoothie and sit on her goose down sofa while watching the fashion channel. Was that too much to ask for her first day off in forever?

As Princess passed one of the numerous hall closets she came across something she hadn't thought about in years. It was her old jet pack and her old laser gloves from back when she tried to be a Powerpuff Girl. The costume and accessories were too small for her now, but she couldn't help but smile as she thought back on all of her misadventures. She had joined the Beat Alls, fought countless battles with the Powerpuff Girls, and had once even become the mayor while wearing this suped-up outfit.

"Hm, maybe I should call Mojo Jojo and see how he's doing," Princess pondered, "...Nah. He's a grouch."

Princess sighed and kept walking. There was a time in her life when if she wanted something all she had to do was set her mind to it. As a child she believed she could have anything, but apparently one thing she couldn't have was a little stinking peace and quiet.

"What am I _doing_?" Princess suddenly asked as she stopped in the middle of the marble hallway, "I can't let my crummy neighbors ruin my day. I'm _Princess_! I don't care if they're criminals, or if Femme Fatale works for them, or even if they have good lawyers! I'm the baddest super criminal that Townsville ever saw, and now I'm the CEO of one of the most powerful corporations in the world! That's _it_! Those party animals are going down!"

Princess then ran down the hallway to another supply closet where her daddy used to keep his hunting weapons. She looked around until she saw the one she wanted; a crossbow that automatically reloaded and had an optional laser feature. Yes, this would do nicely...

* * *

It had been just as Blossom feared. The muffin man knew nothing of what they were talking about. When Butch threatened to melt his head off if he didn't hand over information, the poor muffin man had actually fainted! The team looked all over the muffin shop for clues, but of course they found nothing. Blossom knew that they wouldn't. She had been certain this was a dead end.

The three supers angrily flew back to the Amoeba Boys' 'secret' hideout, and Blossom broke the door down since she was so mad at the Amoeba Boys for sending them off on a wild goose chase.

"Hello, Powerpuffs," Bossman greeted them in a slow sinister voice, "I see you discovered that phase one of our plan was a ruse."

"Phase one of what plan?" Buttercup demanded to know.

"_Hahahaha_," Bossman chuckled evilly, and then abruptly asked, "Did you like that evil laugh? I've been workin' on it for hours."

"It's true," One of the Slims confirmed, "He laughed so much that we was worried about him."

"Why did you tell us the muffin man was Mr. Big?" Blossom asked crossly.

"It was all part of our master plan!" Bossman proudly declared, "For you see, we have finally become true criminals! Not only did we steal ten dollars from you, but we have also committed the crime of...perjury!"

Bossman held his nubby arms up in the air in a maniacal pose, but it was awkward because everyone around him was just staring at him while he held perfectly still. After a minute Bossman put his arms down, and the others looked at the supers to see what they would do.

"Um, Amoeba Boys?" Blossom addressed them almost apologetically, "You can't commit perjury unless you're in court. When you lie to a superhero it's just lying."

"Yeah, dude. We're not even cops," Butch added, "Man, you guys are dumb! What, did you just split one brain cell ten ways? Hah!"

"So...we're not going to jail?" Slim Number One asked in disappointment.

"No," Blossom replied.

"_Aw, nuts_!" Every Amoeba Boy shouted in unison.

"Well, this was a waste of time," Buttercup summarized, "Come on, let's go home and look for real clues."

The three supers flew away feeling defeated, and the Amoeba Boys just continued to stand in place dejectedly. After a few moments however, one of the Juniors asked, "Hey Boss? Should we have told them that Mr. Big hangs out here sometimes?"

"Nah. That ain't important," Bossman shrugged, "Now, about our next criminal plan...Oh, I know! Let's go steal grapes at the supermarket!"

"_Yay_!" Every other Amoeba Boy cheered.

* * *

Princess made her way past partygoers and kegs of booze. The music was even louder now that she was close to the source, and her ears hurt from the infernal cacophony of merriment and debauchery. None of the guys at the party even seemed to notice or care that Princess was holding a crossbow. In fact, many of them were also packing heat. The mixture of business suits and overly casual street wear was also a strange touch, and Princess knew enough about Townsville's criminal element to get a bad feeling about this place.

She needed to find the owner of the house if she was going to complain, but the problem was Princess didn't know who lived there. They had lived next door to her for almost a year, but she was usually so busy with her own life that she never bothered to introduce herself to her neighbors. Now she had to try to figure out which of these drunken idiots was the guy in charge.

Princess went inside the house, deciding that it was as good a place as any to start. The house surprisingly was quieter than outside. In fact, it was quieter than the inside of her own house despite being closer to the action. Princess was suspicious of this, and used the laser on her crossbow to rip a small hole in the wall. She then pulled out a wad of heavy duty foam. Yep, the walls were insulated with soundproof material.

"Oh sure, make the rest of us suffer while you stay in your nice quiet house...jerk," Princess muttered angrily as she walked down a wide hallway that led to several rooms, "I hate you already. Heh, it'd be funny if Femme Fatale lived here. I'd show her...yeah..."

Princess walked around and turned several corners until she was actually lost in the cavernous mansion. It was so much like her own house, yet the layout was different so she couldn't find her way out easily. Princess wasn't feeling as angry anymore now that she had walked for a while, but now that feeling was being replaced with one of foreboding. Something seemed wrong about this house and the people partying around it.

That was when Princess realized. She hadn't run into any people since entering the house. Between the assassin being hired and the mob looking guys outside, Princess knew something was going on. The Powerpuff Girls should have been investigating the situation, but they seemed preoccupied lately. They probably wouldn't help Princess even if she called, so she would have to keep on high alert to protect herself.

Princess then turned a corner that led her into a warm room with dim lights. She could see brightness coming from the side of the room, so she looked to see what she could see. She wished she hadn't. Inside a terrarium that took up the entire side wall was the largest reticulated python Princess had ever seen. She couldn't help it. She was so startled she screamed!

Princess backed into someone, and saw a little man in a trench coat glaring back at her with a cold expression. She screamed again and aimed her crossbow at him, but he didn't even seem phased as he pulled out a pistol and aimed it at her.

"I wouldn't do that, sweetheart," Moose drawled, "You look a little too classy to be one of the hookers. Lemme guess, FBI?"

"No! I live next door, you idiot!" Princess snapped, regaining some of her nerve despite her fear, "Are you the owner of the house? Because your stupid music is ruining my day off! So _turn it down_!"

"How much did you see?" Moose asked darkly.

"I _saw_ a poorly decorated soundproof house and a bunch of lowlives making too much racket!" Princess yelled snidely, "Do you have any idea who I am? I am Princess Morebucks, and my time is worth a lot more than yours! So, either you turn down the stupid stereo outside or I'm calling the cops!"

"You don't wanna do that," Moose replied coolly, and then he snapped his fingers.

Two rough looking goons appeared from the entranceway and disarmed Princess before she could figure out what was happening. She kicked one of them in the shins and made him howl in pain before turning on the other guard to punch him in the face. Before she could get the punch in however, she felt Moose's gun dig into her back.

"Like I said, you don't wanna do that," Moose repeated as he jabbed the gun into the small of her back.

"Eh heh heh heh, can't you guys take a joke?" Princess laughed weakly, trying to diffuse the situation.

"Nope," Moose replied, "You know what to do, fellas."

The two goons grabbed Princess by the arms and quickly tied her to a pole. Princess wondered why they didn't just use a chair like normal crooks, but it became apparent why when Moose got a ladder out of the closet and propped it against the glass of the snake enclosure. Princess gasped, thinking they couldn't be serious, but then one of the goons used one arm to grab her and started climbing up the ladder; ready to throw her to the snake!

"No! Stop! I demand you unhand me at once!" Princess shrieked, caught between anger and panic, "Wait! I, um, I can pay you a lot of money to not feed me to the snake! Come on, guys! Can't you take a joke?"

Moose just watched dispassionately as the goon made it to the opening of the snake terrarium, and Princess screamed for all she was worth even as the snake watched their every move. She tried to kick and wiggle free, but she was tied up too tightly. Just as it seemed like all hope was lost though, someone else entered the room.

"Hey, Moose," A large fat ogre of a man called out to the murderous flunky, "What's going on here? Why aren't you at the party?"

"Just feeding your snake, Mr. Big sir," Moose replied obsequiously.

"Who is that?" Mr. Big asked as he pointed to Princess.

"Just an interloper, sir," Moose assured his boss, "I'm handling it."

"Mr. Big has seen her before," Mr. Big observed, "Yeah, out the window. She lives next door."

"Of course I live next door, dummy!" Princess harrumphed, ignoring the fact that this guy could choose whether she lived or died, "I'm Princess Morebucks! How could you not know who I am?!"

"Nice to meet you, Princess," Mr. Big replied politely, "Are you here for the party?"

"No, I'm not here for the party!" Princess groused, "I'm here because of your stupid noisy friends and your stupid noisy stereo! All I wanted was a little quiet, and now your stupid henchmen are trying to feed me to a snake! If I get out of this then you're in big trouble!"

"Oh," Mr. Big replied dully, a sharp contrast to Princess's fiery temper, "I'm sorry. Mr. Big will turn the music down. Boys, let her go."

"But sir-!" Moose protested.

"She's a neighbor!" Mr. Big abruptly shouted; silencing Moose's complaints, "Fluffy will be fine with chickens this week. We don't feed neighbors to Fluffy. Got it?"

"Yes, sir," Moose sighed, unhappy about it but unwilling to challenge the much larger man, "You heard him, boys. Release the broad."

The mobsters untied Princess and she dusted herself off as if their hands were too dirty to touch her expensive clothes. She walked past Mr. Big as she left and stuck her nose up in the air as a final act of disdain. Mr. Big allowed this to happen, and his subordinates were confused as to why he was being so lenient toward such an unbearable person.

"Moose, do you know that girl's address?" Mr. Big asked.

"Of course, boss. She lives right next door," Moose shrugged in confusion.

"Good. Tomorrow send her a fruit basket," Mr. Big ordered, "I don't want her to think Mr. Big's a bad host. Oh, and Femme Fatale called a few minutes ago. She got the weapons, and soon she'll get the Powerpuff Girls."

"That's great, boss," Moose replied dutifully, "So, um, this Princess dame. You think she'll turn us in?"

"Nah. She's our neighbor," Mr. Big reasoned, "When bad things happen to one house, they happen to every house. She wouldn't want the cops snooping around her house, so they won't snoop around here neither."

Moose smirked at his boss's words. He finally understood. Princess Morebucks was a white collar criminal, not to mention a former notorious super villain. She wouldn't be investigating the Saga Cartel on her own except no one else would work with her. Therefore, Princess was powerless to stop them. Sometimes he underestimated the leader of their mob family, even though time and again Mr. Big had proven how well he could read people.


	6. Therapy

_Author's Notes: I have had this chapter planned for literally months, and I still feel like I left stuff out. LOL! I felt inspired to write in this fic again after waiting far too long to get back into it. For whatever reason when I get inspired for PPG fics it hits me hard. LOL! Hopefully I can keep writing more fanfic chapters, though I won't promise anything. Life has a tendency to have other plans. Anyway, thank you for reading, and please review :)_

* * *

Chapter 6

Therapy

Bubbles sat in the waiting room of Dr. Needo's office. It was Wednesday, which was the day every week she went to see the titular psychologist for her scheduled 1:00 PM appointment. She used to go at 4:00 PM when she was a teenager, but she was no longer in school so she could now go earlier. Just as well. Bubbles was having more trouble occupying her troubled mind of late.

The professor was staying at a hotel until they caught Mr. Big, so Bubbles had the house to herself. She was aware trying to sleep that night was going to be difficult, knowing she was all alone, so she really hoped Dr. Needo had some good advice for her. She sighed, already feeling depressed before even seeing the doctor.

One thing that ran through Bubbles' tormented thoughts was her sister Buttercup. She and Buttercup were so close, and Buttercup was so understanding of her current condition. The situation with Mr. Big however was making Bubbles realize that she and her sister had lost something of the old bond they had once shared.

Buttercup used to be meaner, and Bubbles always hated that when they were little. What Bubbles realized now however was that as kids they were opposing rivals, but also equals. Buttercup would make fun of Bubbles, and Bubbles would do or say something to show up her tomboy sister. Now however, Buttercup treated Bubbles like a glass vase; as something fragile that needed protection. She loved Buttercup for that, but she also realized that she didn't like being that delicate fragile thing.

Bubbles was determined she wasn't going to bring up Buttercup at this week's appointment however. She had spent all of last week's appointment talking about her sisters. This time she needed to talk about something more pressing and immediate.

The nice lady at the receptionist desk called for Bubbles Utonium, and the blonde Powerpuff Girl floated into the room, deciding she didn't feel like walking today. When she entered the office she was comforted by the sight of the little old man with his clipboard and the motivational posters he kept around the room. The wide-eyed kitten poster that said 'Nobody's Purrfect" was her favorite.

"Ah, Bubbles. Come in and have a seat," Dr. Needo greeted her warmly, "So, how have we been feeling this week?"

"Pretty bad, actually," Bubbles replied glumly, "I'm glad our session is today. A lot has happened in the past few days."

"Oh? Do you want to talk about it?" Dr. Needo asked.

"Yeah," Bubbles nodded as she settled into the padded chair, "A mob boss has been threatening my family. Some meanie named Mr. Big. We think he has a grudge against the Powerpuff Girls, but we don't know why. We don't even know who he is! The Professor is safe in an undisclosed location, but that still leaves me and my sisters to try to solve the crime before things can go back to...normal."

"I sense hesitation," Dr. Needo observed, "Perhaps we should discuss the word 'normal'. What do you believe normal to be?"

"I guess...not dangerous?" Bubbles feebly suggested, "I don't know! I'm not sure I've ever felt normal, so I don't even know if I'm using the word correctly, you know what I mean?"

Dr. Needo just nodded and wrote in his clipboard, allowing Bubbles to express herself uninterrupted.

"Something that's really been bothering me the past few days, and it's a weird thing to even care about..." Bubbles hesitated, but then chose to speak, "...I know so many really bad things have been happening lately, but one thing that I can't get out of my head is something an old acquaintance said to me. Her name is Princess. I've told you about her before, right?"

"Yes, the one that was cruel to you in elementary and middle school," Dr. Needo affirmed.

"Yeah, well, she called our house wanting to report a villain that has been released from prison," Bubbles recalled, "I think Princess just wanted attention. What really bugged me though was how she kept saying she wanted to talk to a 'real' Powerpuff Girl. I don't even know why that bothers me so much. I haven't fought crime in years, and I haven't wanted to."

"Well, when was this memory strongest for you?" Dr. Needo asked, "When do you recall these words making you the most angry after the moment had passed?"

"I guess when Mr. Big threw a brick in our window," Bubbles replied, "It was weird. I was being threatened by an unseen enemy, my beloved Octi was torn to pieces in my hand, and I was worried for the professor's safety. Why, when all of this was happening, did I think about Princess saying I wasn't a 'real' Powerpuff Girl?"

"Sometimes when life overwhelms us it can be the little things that become our breaking point," Dr. Needo replied sympathetically.

"Little things is right!" Bubbles agreed, "Octi is just a stuffed toy, a lifeless doll from when I was a kid. Yet when I saw that piece of cloth and bit of stuffing I felt like I had lost a family member or a pet. I'm 20 years old. This stuff shouldn't matter to me. Plush toys? Bullies? That's kid stuff. I have bigger things to worry about. My family is in danger, and I can't do anything to stop it. Why can't we find Mr. Big!? We've battled Him for goodness sake! How could some random guy be more of a threat to my family than an interdimensional personification of evil?"

"So you feel helpless?" Dr. Needo inquired.

"No! Yes! I don't know! It isn't fair!" Bubbles shouted indecisively, "My whole life I've been so powerful. For years I have been aware that even one little misstep could accidentally hurt or even kill somebody. I always have to be careful. It feels like when I want to destroy something I can, but when I want to help I just...mess everything up. The professor is my dad. My sisters are part of my soul. All we have is each other and if I can't protect them or help them then...what good am I? I never chose to be a Powerpuff Girl, but I did choose to walk away. If I go back to being a Powerpuff then I'm saying destiny was right and I shouldn't get to choose who I want to be, but if I stay locked away in my house for fear of another panic attack, then I'm still not living. I don't know what to do. Even when Mr. Big goes away, I'm still here. How do I figure out what I'm supposed to do?"

"You know I can't give you that answer," Dr. Needo replied gently, "Only you can decide how to move forward. Not your friends, not your family, and most certainly not your enemies. Only you."

"Thanks, Doctor," Bubbles replied gratefully, "Can I tell you about how awful Buttercup's new boyfriend is?"

Dr. Needo chuckled at the blunt change in subject. Bubbles laughed too, and was glad to be able to. She spent the rest of her session going on about her family, the Mr. Big case, and a few random dreams she had. When her session was over she felt like she had gotten a weight off her shoulders, and this made her feel ready to take on those that would dare to harm Townsville or her family.

When Bubbles exited the room she saw that a very large man with a bushy red beard was already sitting in the waiting area, adjusting his fedora and flipping through a coloring book. He was most likely Dr. Needo's next patient.

"Have you been to Dr. Needo before?" Bubbles asked, always friendly and ready to strike up a conversation.

The man put down the coloring book and looked at Bubbles, but she couldn't see anything of his face due to his hat obscuring her view.

"I've been here before, but it's been a long time," The man told her, his speech halting and somewhat familiar, "You seen him long?"

"Uh huh," Bubbles nodded happily, "I've been visiting Dr. Needo for ten years. He's really helped me work through my anxiety. I'm sure he can help you too. Don't give up, Mister"

"Thank you," The man replied with a slight smile, "I won't."

Bubbles then flew to the elevator and on her merry way, and the smile on the large man's face turned into a malevolent smirk. He was on the right trail.

"Mr. Biggs?" The receptionist called out, "The doctor will see you now."

Mr. Big then stood up from the bench he had been sitting on, and lumbered over to the door. His gold rings glistened against his black gloves as he turned the knob, and when he opened the door Dr. Needo smiled as if everything were right with the world.

"Ah, Mr. Big. It's been a long time since you've made an appointment," Dr. Needo greeted him genially, "You seem to be in a good mood."

"I am," Mr. Big replied as he took a seat on the same padded chair Bubbles had been sitting in, " Mr. Big brought you some sodas."

"Oh, well thank you very much," Dr. Needo replied cheerfully, "Don't mind if I do."

Dr. Needo started drinking a soda, and Mr. Big smiled wide as he watched him drink.

"Mr. Big decided to take your advice."

"Um, what advice is that? It has been a few years since you came in here," Dr. Needo reminded him.

"When we last talked Mr. Big was feeling down," Mr. Big recalled, "You said that Mr. Big needed to take control of the things that made me feel sad and angry. That my temper was bad, and Mr. Big needed to take control. Well, that's exactly what's been happening."

"That's wonderful!" Dr. Needo exclaimed, "So, what have you been doing to control your environment?"

"Mr. Big started doing all the things on the list," Mr. Big replied as he handed a crumbled and yellowed piece of paper to the therapist, "My brothers and me made that list a long time ago, and Mr. Big has done almost everything on it."

Dr. Needo unfurled the list, but he already knew what it was. It was a bucket list from when Mr. Big and his brothers were kids. Most of the things on the list were selfish and stupid, as most bucket lists tend to be when one is young. He knew that Mr. Big was at least 30 years old however, so he hoped that not _everything_ was checked off the list.

Much to Dr. Needo's surprise, most of the list did in fact have red check marks. The items included were: Learn calligraphy, run a super successful drug empire, get a pet snake, have a Lamborghini, get filthy stinking rich, move into a mansion, own a fancy hat, visit Las Vegas, and eat 50 hamburgers for dinner. The only two things that seemed to not be checked off the list were: Get with an older woman, and kill the Powerpuff Girls. The last one seemed to be a late addition, written in gold marker whereas the other items were written in black pen.

"Hm, it seems to me not all of your aggressive tendencies have been curtailed," Dr. Needo commented on the final item on the list, "Tell me why you want to kill the Powerpuff Girls."

"Because I can't sleep," Mr. Big replied solemnly, "Every time I see one of them fly in the air, or every time they're on the news, Mr. Big's Pete's Tea makes the bad thoughts come back."

"Pete's tea?" Dr. Needo couldn't help but ask.

"Yeah, you said that's what it's called when bad memories interfere with what you're doing," Mr. Big reminded him.

"Pete's tea?" Dr. Needo repeated, but then with realization he exclaimed, "Oh! You mean PTSD! Those are initials. They stand for post-traumatic stress disorder. Yes, you were diagnosed with that following the deaths of your family. I don't understand what that has to do with the Powerpuff Girls, however."

"Everything," Mr. Big replied seriously, but then perked up and asked, "Would you like another soda, Doctor?"

"Well...I suppose one more couldn't hurt," Dr. Needo replied agreeably, "Normally I wouldn't take food or drink from a client, just so you know. Soda is okay though since the can is factory sealed."

"If Mr. Big had known that I would've brought beer. Hahaha!" Mr. Big joked, and Dr. Needo laughed along.

"In all seriousness though, Mr. Big, I feel that we need to discuss your unresolved anger toward the Powerpuff Girls," Dr. Needo said, "Do you know when it started?"

"Uh, obviously!" Mr. Big shouted crossly, "When they killed my family! Those Powerpuffs think they can beat up whoever they want, and do whatever they want with no one telling them they can't! How many criminals have _died_ after getting beat up by those little brats? Just because my family was crooks don't mean their lives didn't matter! Mr. Big finally has the means to kill off those Powerpuff Girls, and no one can stop me!"

With that Mr. Big suddenly stood up and rammed his ham fist into the chair's arm; breaking it into pieces. Dr. Needo was very nervous, but did his best not to show it to his patient, and Mr. Big looked down at the piece of furniture he had just ruined.

"Sorry, Doctor," Mr. Big apologized sheepishly, "Mr. Big got carried away. Just add the chair to Mr. Big's bill."

"Um, o-of course," Dr. Needo stammered, "Listen, between the two cans of soda and, well, _this_, I really need to use the bathroom. I'll just be a moment."

With that Dr. Needo dashed out of the room to find the nearest toilet. Mr. Big smiled with satisfaction, as the plan was working perfectly.

Moose had been the one to suggest this plan to Mr. Big, and Mr. Big was surprised it was actually working. Now he was alone in the office of Dr. Needo, a psychiatrist that worked with Bubbles, a Powerpuff Girl. There was only one thing to do now.

Mr. Big walked over to the file cabinet and opened the section for the B-D patients. He flipped through a few of the names until he found Bubbles. _Pay dirt. _Mr. Big took years' worth of papers out of Bubbles' file and shoved them into his suit jacket. He then closed the cabinet and sat back down in the broken chair; the picture of innocence.

When Dr. Needo got back Mr. Big was still sitting there as if nothing had happened.

"Well, Mr. Big, it appears we only have a few minutes left of your time," Dr. Needo pointed out, "Is there anything else you want to update me on or shall we call it a day?"

"Mr. Big feels better now, Doctor. Thank you," Mr. Big replied politely, "Mr. Big should see you more often. It's always a rewarding experience."

Mr. Big then shook Dr. Needo's hand and left without a fuss. Dr. Needo called for someone to remove the broken chair and took down a few more notes about Mr. Big while he had a few minutes. He just hoped his next patient wasn't quite so...intense.

"Patient displays bouts of uncontrolled anger," Dr. Needo spoke aloud as he wrote, "No signs of improvement since last visit. Appears to live vicariously through the dreams and life goals of his deceased brothers. Patient is friendly and giving, though appears to believe all relationships are transactional. Perhaps a symptom of the crime family lifestyle? Suffers delusions of grandeur and a hatred of the Powerpuff Girls. Use extreme caution when bringing up the subject, as the patient should be considered unstable and dangerous. Bill patient for the chair."

Dr. Needo finished his notes and then opened his file cabinet to place them inside. When he opened the drawer however he noticed one of the files was lifted up higher than the others and papers were strewn everywhere. The file was for his last patient: Bubbles Utonium.

"Oh no!" Dr. Needo gasped, "I've been robbed! I need to call the police!"

* * *

Meanwhile, in the back seat of a stretch limo, Mr. Big was looking through the stolen files as he was being driven home. A lot of what he grabbed wasn't useful, so he merely skimmed it. He was looking for today's visit, for he knew that it would be the key to figuring out his next move.

Finally, he found the sought after file, and the contents were everything he hoped for. Apparently Bubbles was distressed because of what his cartel was doing to her and her family. The Octi being ripped apart had the exact reaction he wanted from her. She was sad, angry, and questioning everything in her life. Mr. Big wanted to frame this piece of paper and hang it on his wall.

The biggest revelation however was that Professor Utonium had been moved from the home. It didn't say where he was, but Mr. Big had connections all over the state. He would have his men check every hotel, every apartment building, and every college dorm until he found the professor. Once he had the professor in his clutches, he would have the means to make the Powerpuff Girls come to him and beg for mercy.


End file.
